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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 120 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. rash — a series
  3. drill — army training
  4. stock — goods
  5. degree — an amount
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. rash — hasty
  9. drill — the tool
  10. pitch — completely
  11. stock — shares
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. current — of water
  16. drill — a practice
  17. degree — from a university
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. degree — temperature
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. current — happening now
  23. current — electric
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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