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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 120 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: current · rule · hand · march · degree · spell · cap · cabinet

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. degree — from a university
  4. current — happening now
  5. rule — government
  6. spell — magic
  7. march — the month
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. rule — a law
  10. cap — a lid
  11. current — of water
  12. degree — temperature
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. degree — an amount
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month
  19. hand — in cards
  20. spell — letters
  21. hand — help
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. spell — a short time
  24. cap — a hat

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