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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  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. degree — an amount
  2. stem — to come from
  3. current — happening now
  4. current — electric
  5. current — of water
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. can — a tin
  9. perch — the fish
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. object — a thing
  12. wind — moving air
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. can — a tin
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. march — the month
  18. object — an aim
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wind — moving air
  22. object — to protest
  23. can — to be able to
  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