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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. current — electric
  3. stem — to come from
  4. current — of water
  5. spell — a short time
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. degree — from a university
  8. hand — in cards
  9. degree — an amount
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — of ice
  13. spell — letters
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cap — a lid
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. tube — a container
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. current — happening now
  20. spell — magic
  21. degree — temperature
  22. tube — the underground
  23. saw — the tool
  24. hand — help

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