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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. degree — from a university
  3. current — electric
  4. present — the time now
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. rash — hasty
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. plane — a tool
  9. content — happy
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. present — a gift
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. squash — to crush
  15. current — of water
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. content — the amount
  18. degree — an amount
  19. squash — the sport
  20. rash — a series
  21. present — there
  22. current — happening now
  23. degree — temperature
  24. stem — to come from

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