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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: cue · track · rest · vault · rule · mine · degree · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. rule — government
  3. cue — a hint
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — an amount
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the sport
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — a break
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. rule — a law
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. cue — for pool
  15. rest — what's left
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. cue — a signal
  18. track — to keep track
  19. degree — from a university
  20. track — a path
  21. vault — a safe
  22. track — a song
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — belonging to me

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