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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. current — happening now
  3. squash — to crush
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. current — electric
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. degree — from a university
  9. fine — all right
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. cold — not warm
  13. degree — an amount
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. squash — the sport
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. degree — temperature
  22. fine — high quality
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. fine — a penalty

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