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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: track · chair · cue · deal · degree · ruler

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. degree — from a university
  8. cue — for pool
  9. degree — an amount
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. degree — temperature
  12. track — a path
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. chair — a leader
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. cue — a hint
  17. deal — to handle
  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