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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 university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. squash — the sport
  5. rash — a series
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. bank — of a river
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. squash — to crush
  15. bank — for money
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bank — for money

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