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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 120 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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. degree — an amount
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — of a river
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. current — electric
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. dip — to sink
  13. shower — rain
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. shower — to wash
  17. wax — to grow
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bank — for money
  20. degree — from a university
  21. saw — the tool
  22. current — of water
  23. current — happening now
  24. saw — the tool

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