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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. current — electric
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. current — happening now
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. pit — in a race
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bark — to shout
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. pass — a permit
  17. degree — an amount
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — rain
  22. current — of water
  23. shower — to wash
  24. pit — a hole

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