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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. pitch — completely
  3. degree — temperature
  4. wake — a trail
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. degree — an amount
  8. mark — a trace
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. current — happening now
  11. degree — from a university
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. snap — to click
  14. current — of water
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. mark — a grade
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. craft — boats
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. craft — a skill
  21. file — a tool
  22. file — a document
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. current — electric

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