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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 116 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: pound · degree · court · rule · patient · scale · wind · squash

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. squash — the sport
  5. degree — from a university
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. scale — in music
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. wind — moving air
  12. court — of law
  13. squash — to crush
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. rule — a law
  16. wind — moving air
  17. court — of a king
  18. scale — size or range
  19. pound — a weight
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — temperature
  22. rule — government
  23. court — for sport
  24. patient — a sick person

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