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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: degree · fine · straw · rock · current · kick · race · tube

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. current — electric
  3. race — humankind
  4. degree — temperature
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. current — of water
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. rock — a stone
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. kick — in football
  11. fine — all right
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. degree — an amount
  14. fine — high quality
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. degree — from a university
  18. current — happening now
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. tube — the underground
  22. race — a contest
  23. tube — a container
  24. race — the arms race

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