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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: degree · ruler · stick · wake · hide · wound · cue · court

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. cue — for pool
  4. wound — an injury
  5. degree — temperature
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. wound — an injury
  9. degree — an amount
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. court — of law
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cue — a hint
  20. court — of a king
  21. wake — a trail
  22. court — for sport
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. hide — to keep secret

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