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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: squash · ruler · rest · board · rush · court · cold · snap

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. snap — to click
  4. rush — hurry
  5. board — to get on
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. rest — what's left
  8. court — for sport
  9. cold — an illness
  10. board — a committee
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rest — a break
  13. rest — what's left
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. court — of a king
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. court — of law
  20. squash — the sport
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. squash — to crush

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