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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: craft · rule · rest · mark · squash · degree

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. rule — a law
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. rest — a break
  6. degree — temperature
  7. mark — a trace
  8. degree — from a university
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rest — what's left
  11. mark — a grade
  12. rule — government
  13. squash — the sport
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. rest — what's left
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. craft — a skill

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