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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 124 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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. snap — to click
  3. object — an aim
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — temperature
  6. current — of water
  7. object — to protest
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. fork — in a road
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. current — electric
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — the earth
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. object — a thing
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. current — happening now
  20. ground — a position
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — music
  23. stem — to come from
  24. degree — an amount

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