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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. spell — letters
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. spell — a short time
  6. degree — temperature
  7. scale — in music
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. mine — for digging
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. current — electric
  16. degree — an amount
  17. current — happening now
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. stem — to come from
  21. rush — hurry
  22. spell — magic
  23. scale — size or range
  24. degree — from a university

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