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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. bass — the fish
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. content — happy
  5. wind — moving air
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. content — the amount
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. deal — to handle
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wind — moving air
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bass — low music
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bass — the instrument

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com