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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. pitch — completely
  4. current — happening now
  5. race — humankind
  6. degree — an amount
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. race — the arms race
  9. row — to paddle
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. race — a contest
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — a tool
  14. key — in music
  15. row — a line
  16. key — for a lock
  17. key — the most important part
  18. degree — from a university
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. current — electric
  21. degree — temperature
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. current — of water
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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