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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. current — electric
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pound — a weight
  5. file — a document
  6. track — a song
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bound — certain
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. degree — from a university
  12. track — a path
  13. season — of the year
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. season — in sport
  16. saw — the tool
  17. current — of water
  18. track — to keep track
  19. file — a tool
  20. bound — obliged
  21. file — a line of people
  22. current — happening now
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. degree — an amount

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