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

Word bank: racket · stick · file · ruler · face · degree

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. face — to confront
  5. degree — an amount
  6. face — to point toward
  7. degree — from a university
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. face — part of the head
  12. file — a line of people
  13. degree — temperature
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. file — a tool
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. file — a document
  18. ruler — for measuring

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