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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 drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  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. nail — for a hammer
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. current — electric
  4. suit — to fit
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. tube — a container
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. current — happening now
  10. field — farmland
  11. degree — from a university
  12. clip — a video
  13. suit — in cards
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. field — a subject
  17. current — of water
  18. field — for sport
  19. suit — clothes
  20. tube — the underground
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. degree — temperature
  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