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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bound — tied together
  4. face — to confront
  5. mine — for digging
  6. club — for dancing
  7. club — for golf
  8. bound — obliged
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bound — certain
  11. bulb — for light
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. degree — temperature
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. face — part of the head
  16. current — of water
  17. current — happening now
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. degree — an amount
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. current — electric
  23. lie — to recline
  24. bulb — for light

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