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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. march — the month
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. chest — of your body
  5. suit — clothes
  6. current — electric
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. march — the month
  9. suit — in cards
  10. scale — size or range
  11. scale — in music
  12. mate — to breed
  13. march — music
  14. suit — to fit
  15. degree — an amount
  16. mate — a friend
  17. chest — a box
  18. current — happening now
  19. mate — a partner
  20. degree — from a university
  21. branch — a division
  22. chest — of your body
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. degree — temperature

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