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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: row · spring · scale · pitcher · content · degree · rule · lie

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. degree — temperature
  3. spring — the season
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — size or range
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. degree — from a university
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — to recline
  11. row — a line
  12. rule — government
  13. spring — of water
  14. row — to paddle
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — happy
  18. spring — a coil
  19. degree — an amount
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. rule — a law
  24. scale — for weighing

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