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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. current — electric
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. content — happy
  5. kick — in football
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. degree — temperature
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. degree — an amount
  14. scale — size or range
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. degree — from a university
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. current — of water
  22. scale — in music
  23. current — happening now
  24. content — the amount

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