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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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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: lean · ruler · cell · rush · rest · object · degree · court

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. degree — an amount
  3. cell — in biology
  4. object — an aim
  5. object — to protest
  6. cell — a phone
  7. rest — what's left
  8. court — of law
  9. court — of a king
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. lean — thin
  12. court — for sport
  13. degree — from a university
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. lean — to bend
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. rest — what's left
  20. object — a thing
  21. degree — temperature
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rest — a break
  24. ruler — a monarch

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