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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pop · rule · charge · roll · straw · fan · tear · degree

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. degree — an amount
  3. charge — electricity
  4. degree — temperature
  5. tear — from crying
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. tear — to rip
  8. degree — from a university
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. charge — a price
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. pop — soda
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pop — music
  17. pop — to visit
  18. charge — in control
  19. tear — from crying
  20. roll — a cake
  21. roll — a list
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — a law

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