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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. chest — of your body
  3. land — ground
  4. field — for sport
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. degree — an amount
  7. current — of water
  8. current — electric
  9. field — a subject
  10. chest — of your body
  11. suit — clothes
  12. degree — temperature
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. degree — from a university
  15. suit — to fit
  16. chest — a box
  17. land — a country
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. field — farmland
  21. land — to come down
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. suit — in cards
  24. bore — to tire

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