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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 116 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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. game — a match
  3. press — a publisher
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. content — the amount
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — to grow
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. content — happy
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — an amount
  13. shower — to wash
  14. press — newspapers
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. game — wild animals
  18. press — to push
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. degree — temperature
  21. snap — to click
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. shower — rain

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