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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. chair — a leader
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — magic
  5. clip — a video
  6. root — of a plant
  7. clip — to cut
  8. stock — goods
  9. spell — letters
  10. degree — an amount
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. root — of a word
  13. degree — from a university
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. lean — to bend
  17. degree — temperature
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. root — the cause
  20. stock — shares
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. lean — thin
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. clip — for paper

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