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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. rule — a law
  3. rule — government
  4. degree — temperature
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. rest — what's left
  7. cue — a signal
  8. kid — to tease
  9. degree — from a university
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. cue — a hint
  12. game — wild animals
  13. rest — a break
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. rest — what's left
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. game — a match
  18. cue — for pool
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. kid — child
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. mouse — for a computer

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