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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. board — a committee
  3. rock — music
  4. current — electric
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — an amount
  8. board — to get on
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. current — happening now
  11. can — to be able to
  12. current — of water
  13. can — a tin
  14. lean — thin
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. can — a tin
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rock — a stone
  20. capital — money
  21. lean — to bend
  22. capital — a city
  23. band — a music group
  24. board — a flat piece

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