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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 124 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. current — of water
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. object — an aim
  5. hand — in cards
  6. degree — temperature
  7. vault — a safe
  8. degree — an amount
  9. object — a thing
  10. club — for dancing
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. degree — from a university
  14. club — for golf
  15. object — to protest
  16. bass — the fish
  17. club — a group
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — electric
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — for catching

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