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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. band — a music group
  3. degree — temperature
  4. mine — for digging
  5. current — happening now
  6. ground — a position
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. kick — in football
  9. date — the fruit
  10. ground — crushed
  11. current — of water
  12. degree — from a university
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. degree — an amount
  15. current — electric
  16. ground — the earth
  17. mug — a cup
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. band — a ring
  21. mug — a face
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. kick — with a leg

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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