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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. rash — hasty
  7. current — electric
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. degree — from a university
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. current — of water
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. fall — the season
  16. current — happening now
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. bore — to drill
  21. fall — to drop
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. bore — to tire
  24. rash — a series

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