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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. current — electric
  3. land — a country
  4. current — happening now
  5. bank — for money
  6. squash — to crush
  7. squash — the sport
  8. land — ground
  9. hand — help
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bank — for money
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — an amount
  14. current — of water
  15. degree — temperature
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. game — a match
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. land — to come down
  21. hand — in cards
  22. game — wild animals
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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