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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. craft — a skill
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. cap — of ice
  5. current — electric
  6. craft — boats
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cap — a lid
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. land — to come down
  13. current — happening now
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. land — ground
  17. cap — a hat
  18. current — of water
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. degree — temperature
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. coach — a trainer

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