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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. current — electric
  5. vault — a safe
  6. craft — boats
  7. current — happening now
  8. firm — steady
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. face — to point toward
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. wound — an injury
  13. degree — temperature
  14. tube — a container
  15. firm — a company
  16. face — to confront
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. craft — a skill
  19. face — part of the head
  20. wound — an injury
  21. firm — decided
  22. current — of water
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. tube — in a tire

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