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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: lean · stick · degree · race · patient · current

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. race — a contest
  5. degree — an amount
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. race — humankind
  8. current — electric
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. lean — thin
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. race — the arms race
  13. lean — to bend
  14. current — happening now
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. current — of water
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. degree — temperature

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