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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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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: rule · key · lean · present · scale · land · degree · hand

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. land — ground
  3. degree — an amount
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. hand — help
  7. rule — a law
  8. scale — size or range
  9. rule — government
  10. present — there
  11. lean — thin
  12. lean — to bend
  13. land — a country
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. key — the most important part
  16. degree — temperature
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. hand — in cards
  19. scale — in music
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — the time now
  22. key — in music
  23. key — for a lock
  24. land — to come down

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