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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: bowl · wind · current · key · degree · fall · face · kid

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. fall — the season
  3. degree — from a university
  4. current — of water
  5. current — electric
  6. key — in music
  7. current — happening now
  8. kid — to tease
  9. fall — to drop
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to confront
  13. fall — to drop
  14. face — to point toward
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. kid — child
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. key — for a lock
  24. key — the most important part

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