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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. degree — temperature
  3. swing — music
  4. degree — from a university
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. degree — an amount
  8. current — of water
  9. current — happening now
  10. tear — from crying
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pass — a permit
  16. wound — an injury
  17. tear — from crying
  18. track — a path
  19. bat — the animal
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. track — a song
  23. track — to keep track
  24. tear — to rip

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