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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: court · bank · wind · deal · straw · degree · key · rule

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. degree — an amount
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. key — in music
  7. rule — government
  8. bank — of a river
  9. degree — from a university
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. key — for a lock
  12. rule — a law
  13. degree — temperature
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of law
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. key — the most important part
  24. bank — for money

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