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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 124 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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. clip — for paper
  3. rash — a series
  4. file — a document
  5. pop — to visit
  6. degree — an amount
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. degree — temperature
  9. club — a group
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. pop — soda
  13. club — for dancing
  14. club — for golf
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. file — a line of people
  17. clip — to cut
  18. file — a tool
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pop — music
  21. rash — hasty
  22. squash — to crush
  23. clip — a video
  24. rash — on the skin

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