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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: current · degree · rule · pitch · bay · cold

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. rule — government
  3. pitch — completely
  4. cold — an illness
  5. current — electric
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. current — happening now
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. degree — an amount
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. rule — a law
  18. current — of water

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