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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: rule · shower · sharp · degree · board · ball · rush · fork

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. sharp — clever
  4. rush — hurry
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. degree — from a university
  8. ball — a great time
  9. fork — in a road
  10. board — to get on
  11. rule — government
  12. shower — rain
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rule — a law
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. shower — to wash
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. ball — a dance
  22. board — a committee
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. degree — temperature

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