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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: rest · ruler · fall · wind · deal · content · degree · pitch

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. deal — to handle
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wind — moving air
  8. content — happy
  9. fall — the season
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. degree — from a university
  14. content — the amount
  15. rest — what's left
  16. pitch — completely
  17. degree — temperature
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. fall — to drop
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. rest — a break

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