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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. bank — for money
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kid — child
  5. degree — temperature
  6. file — a tool
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. degree — from a university
  9. file — a line of people
  10. wound — an injury
  11. board — a committee
  12. current — of water
  13. current — happening now
  14. file — a document
  15. wound — an injury
  16. last — finally
  17. board — to get on
  18. bank — of a river
  19. last — to go on
  20. degree — an amount
  21. last — final
  22. bank — for money
  23. current — electric
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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