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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. spring — a coil
  3. degree — from a university
  4. firm — decided
  5. current — electric
  6. squash — the sport
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. spring — the season
  9. degree — an amount
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. object — to protest
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. firm — steady
  14. current — happening now
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. season — of the year
  17. object — an aim
  18. current — of water
  19. object — a thing
  20. season — in sport
  21. degree — temperature
  22. spring — of water
  23. firm — a company
  24. pitcher — a jug

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