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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 116 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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. court — of law
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bass — low music
  5. wind — moving air
  6. current — electric
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. mark — a grade
  10. court — of a king
  11. drill — a practice
  12. current — of water
  13. mark — a trace
  14. degree — from a university
  15. court — for sport
  16. pop — music
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wind — moving air
  19. degree — an amount
  20. pop — to visit
  21. bass — the fish
  22. current — happening now
  23. drill — the tool
  24. pop — soda

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