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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — to play on
  4. pit — a hole
  5. current — happening now
  6. degree — an amount
  7. tube — a container
  8. degree — temperature
  9. land — to come down
  10. tube — the underground
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. swing — music
  13. spring — of water
  14. pit — in a race
  15. spring — a coil
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. degree — from a university
  18. current — of water
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. land — ground
  23. current — electric
  24. land — a country

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