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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: rock · rest · straw · chest · mark · jam · rule · degree

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. chest — a box
  3. chest — of your body
  4. degree — from a university
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rock — a stone
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. rest — a break
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — a grade
  11. degree — an amount
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rule — a law
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rule — government
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. rock — music

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