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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: lean · wound · ruler · degree · swing · game · arm · court

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. court — of law
  3. swing — in golf
  4. degree — temperature
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. game — wild animals
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. lean — to bend
  13. court — of a king
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. swing — music
  17. degree — from a university
  18. swing — to play on
  19. game — a match
  20. court — for sport
  21. lean — thin
  22. degree — an amount
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. game — a kind of play

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