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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 124 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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  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. cap — a lid
  2. current — electric
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cap — of ice
  8. bat — the animal
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. degree — from a university
  13. current — of water
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. degree — an amount
  16. chip — to eat
  17. degree — temperature
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. chip — for betting
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. bulb — for light
  23. perch — the fish
  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