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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. club — a group
  3. ground — crushed
  4. degree — from a university
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. current — electric
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. shower — rain
  10. club — for golf
  11. current — of water
  12. degree — an amount
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. mark — a trace
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. degree — temperature
  17. mark — a grade
  18. shower — to wash
  19. ground — a position
  20. current — happening now
  21. ground — the earth
  22. game — a match
  23. club — for dancing
  24. racket — for tennis

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