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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: degree · current · content · band · rest · key · squash · face

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. 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. band — a ring
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. squash — the sport
  4. rest — a break
  5. content — the amount
  6. content — happy
  7. squash — to crush
  8. key — in music
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. degree — an amount
  11. key — the most important part
  12. current — happening now
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. current — electric
  15. face — to point toward
  16. degree — from a university
  17. face — to confront
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — what's left
  20. band — a music group
  21. current — of water
  22. face — part of the head
  23. key — for a lock
  24. 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