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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. rock — music
  3. degree — an amount
  4. mate — a partner
  5. fall — the season
  6. rock — a stone
  7. bound — tied together
  8. club — for golf
  9. mate — to breed
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bound — obliged
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. club — for dancing
  14. bound — certain
  15. current — happening now
  16. club — a group
  17. current — of water
  18. mate — a friend
  19. degree — from a university
  20. fall — to drop
  21. current — electric
  22. kid — child
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. degree — temperature

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