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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. ball — a great time
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. spring — of water
  5. degree — from a university
  6. branch — a division
  7. season — of the year
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. spring — a coil
  11. season — in sport
  12. degree — an amount
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. degree — temperature
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — to grow
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. ball — a dance
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. current — happening now
  22. current — of water
  23. spring — the season
  24. ball — a round shape

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