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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. current — happening now
  3. chip — to eat
  4. race — humankind
  5. mate — a friend
  6. tube — the underground
  7. current — electric
  8. degree — an amount
  9. mate — a partner
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of law
  12. mate — to breed
  13. chip — for betting
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. current — of water
  16. degree — from a university
  17. race — the arms race
  18. court — of a king
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. degree — temperature
  24. race — a contest

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