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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. degree — from a university
  3. current — happening now
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — wild animals
  6. scale — size or range
  7. last — to go on
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. current — of water
  10. last — finally
  11. squash — the sport
  12. can — a tin
  13. scale — in music
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. squash — to crush
  16. degree — temperature
  17. can — a tin
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. deal — to handle
  20. current — electric
  21. last — final
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. game — a match
  24. degree — an amount

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