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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 116 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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. current — happening now
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. press — newspapers
  5. cap — a hat
  6. field — farmland
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. press — to push
  9. current — of water
  10. lean — to bend
  11. degree — from a university
  12. squash — the sport
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. cap — of ice
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. lean — thin
  17. field — a subject
  18. squash — to crush
  19. current — electric
  20. cap — a lid
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. degree — temperature
  23. press — a publisher
  24. field — for sport

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