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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 120 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: bear · row · degree · straw · ball · scale · rule · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — government
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bear — the animal
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. row — to paddle
  11. degree — temperature
  12. ball — a great time
  13. rule — a law
  14. ball — a dance
  15. scale — size or range
  16. degree — from a university
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. scale — in music
  22. row — a line
  23. bear — the animal
  24. degree — an amount

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