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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. spring — a coil
  3. degree — an amount
  4. mine — for digging
  5. swing — in golf
  6. rock — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. degree — from a university
  9. spring — of water
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. swing — music
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. current — of water
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. vault — a safe
  18. current — electric
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. rock — a stone
  21. current — happening now
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. spring — the season
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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