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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 · degree · racket · rash · firm · capital

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. degree — temperature
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. rash — hasty
  5. degree — an amount
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. capital — money
  9. firm — a company
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. degree — from a university
  13. firm — steady
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — a city
  18. rash — a series

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