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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: ruler · spell · clip · degree · rest · swing

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. rest — what's left
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. spell — letters
  5. clip — for paper
  6. swing — music
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. degree — an amount
  9. spell — a short time
  10. clip — to cut
  11. spell — magic
  12. rest — a break
  13. clip — a video
  14. swing — to play on
  15. degree — from a university
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. rest — what's left
  18. swing — in golf

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