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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. squash — to crush
  3. craft — boats
  4. current — happening now
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. squash — the sport
  7. current — electric
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. pitch — completely
  10. degree — from a university
  11. current — of water
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. tear — from crying
  14. degree — an amount
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tear — to rip
  17. degree — temperature
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. snap — to click
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. tube — a container
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. tear — from crying

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