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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. board — to get on
  7. degree — from a university
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cold — not warm
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bear — the animal
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bear — the animal
  16. snap — to click
  17. current — of water
  18. degree — an amount
  19. current — electric
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tube — a container
  22. board — a committee
  23. degree — temperature
  24. current — happening now

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