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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cold — an illness
  3. degree — from a university
  4. current — of water
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. current — happening now
  7. rash — a series
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. current — electric
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. ball — a dance
  17. ball — a great time
  18. cold — not warm
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. degree — temperature
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rest — a break
  23. degree — an amount
  24. cold — the Cold War

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