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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. drill — the tool
  3. degree — from a university
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. pound — a weight
  7. current — electric
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. object — to protest
  11. hand — help
  12. degree — an amount
  13. drill — army training
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cell — in biology
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. current — happening now
  18. cell — a phone
  19. foot — a measure
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. object — a thing
  22. drill — a practice
  23. object — an aim
  24. hand — in cards

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