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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. degree — from a university
  3. current — happening now
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. degree — an amount
  6. cap — of ice
  7. degree — temperature
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. current — of water
  11. cap — a hat
  12. firm — decided
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. mine — for digging
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. sharp — clever
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. firm — steady
  19. firm — a company
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. band — a music group
  22. cap — a lid
  23. band — a ring
  24. nail — on a finger

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