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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. current — electric
  3. craft — a skill
  4. degree — an amount
  5. current — of water
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. can — a tin
  8. board — a committee
  9. clip — for paper
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. can — to be able to
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. degree — temperature
  15. craft — boats
  16. clip — to cut
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. track — a path
  19. current — happening now
  20. can — a tin
  21. board — to get on
  22. clip — a video
  23. track — a song
  24. track — to keep track

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