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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. degree — temperature
  4. rest — what's left
  5. ground — the earth
  6. current — of water
  7. degree — from a university
  8. row — to paddle
  9. rule — government
  10. ground — a position
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. stock — goods
  13. current — happening now
  14. degree — an amount
  15. current — electric
  16. season — in sport
  17. season — of the year
  18. rest — a break
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. rest — what's left
  22. ground — crushed
  23. stock — shares
  24. row — a line

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