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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: key · cap · cold · degree · ruler · chest

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. chest — of your body
  5. degree — from a university
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cap — of ice
  9. key — the most important part
  10. cold — an illness
  11. chest — a box
  12. degree — an amount
  13. key — in music
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cold — not warm
  16. key — for a lock
  17. cap — a lid
  18. chest — of your body

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