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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: chair · ruler · hand · bowl · row · degree

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. row — a line
  4. degree — from a university
  5. hand — in cards
  6. chair — a leader
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — help
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. degree — an amount
  18. degree — temperature

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