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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: key · rule · wind · ground · degree · row · safe · can

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. can — a tin
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. ground — a position
  6. degree — from a university
  7. rule — a law
  8. key — for a lock
  9. can — a tin
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wind — moving air
  12. key — in music
  13. degree — temperature
  14. row — a line
  15. ground — crushed
  16. can — to be able to
  17. row — to paddle
  18. key — the most important part
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. ground — the earth
  21. degree — an amount
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. wind — moving air
  24. rule — government

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