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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: straw · wind · content · vault · degree · ball · firm · current

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. current — happening now
  3. wind — moving air
  4. firm — a company
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. firm — steady
  9. wind — moving air
  10. current — electric
  11. ball — a great time
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — an amount
  14. current — of water
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. vault — a safe
  17. firm — decided
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. degree — temperature
  21. content — the amount
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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