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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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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: staff · fan · field · jam · fall · degree · current · swing

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. fall — to drop
  3. staff — employees
  4. swing — music
  5. degree — temperature
  6. field — farmland
  7. current — electric
  8. staff — employees
  9. current — happening now
  10. degree — an amount
  11. field — a subject
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. staff — a stick
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. degree — from a university
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. swing — to play on
  19. current — of water
  20. fall — to drop
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. field — for sport
  24. swing — in golf

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