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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. degree — from a university
  4. scale — size or range
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. rash — hasty
  14. rash — a series
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. perch — the fish
  19. rule — a law
  20. deal — to handle
  21. degree — an amount
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. degree — temperature
  24. scale — in music

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