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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pitcher · pop · wound · kick · degree · current · patient · cell

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pop — to visit
  5. current — of water
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. current — happening now
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pop — soda
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. degree — an amount
  17. current — electric
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. cell — a phone
  20. pop — music
  21. kick — in football
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pitcher — a jug

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