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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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. craft — boats
  4. current — electric
  5. degree — an amount
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. race — the arms race
  8. tear — to rip
  9. content — happy
  10. tear — from crying
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. craft — a skill
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. board — a committee
  15. degree — from a university
  16. current — of water
  17. tear — from crying
  18. race — a contest
  19. current — happening now
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. content — the amount
  22. sharp — clever
  23. degree — temperature
  24. race — humankind

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