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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. degree — from a university
  3. current — of water
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. spring — the season
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. degree — temperature
  10. march — the month
  11. degree — an amount
  12. board — to get on
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. current — happening now
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. bore — to drill
  17. spring — a coil
  18. board — a committee
  19. bore — to tire
  20. current — electric
  21. spring — of water
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. squash — the sport
  24. squash — to crush

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