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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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. row — a quarrel
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. rash — hasty
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. rest — what's left
  9. degree — temperature
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. degree — an amount
  12. season — of the year
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. rest — what's left
  15. season — in sport
  16. current — of water
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a line
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. current — happening now
  22. rash — a series
  23. rest — a break
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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