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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. last — to go on
  3. degree — temperature
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. last — finally
  6. stock — shares
  7. cell — in biology
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. stock — goods
  10. degree — from a university
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. last — final
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — a trace
  18. degree — an amount
  19. cell — a phone
  20. current — of water
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — completely
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. current — happening now

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