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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. degree — from a university
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. game — a match
  5. stock — shares
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. degree — temperature
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. hand — in cards
  12. game — wild animals
  13. present — the time now
  14. stock — goods
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. ball — a dance
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. ball — a great time
  20. present — a gift
  21. date — the fruit
  22. hand — help
  23. degree — an amount
  24. present — there

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