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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. cell — in biology
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. prune — to trim
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. scale — in music
  13. chair — a leader
  14. scale — size or range
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. current — of water
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. current — happening now
  20. prune — to trim
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. cell — a phone
  23. degree — an amount
  24. dip — to sink

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