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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 120 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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. last — finally
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. bore — to tire
  5. content — happy
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. degree — an amount
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. current — electric
  11. plane — a tool
  12. current — happening now
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. last — final
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. cold — not warm
  17. last — to go on
  18. content — the amount
  19. bore — to drill
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — temperature
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. current — of water
  24. cold — the Cold War

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