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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: bore · ball · race · cap · spell · current · saw · degree

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. degree — from a university
  3. ball — a great time
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. race — humankind
  6. cap — of ice
  7. degree — temperature
  8. spell — letters
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. spell — magic
  13. race — a contest
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cap — a hat
  16. spell — a short time
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. current — electric
  19. saw — the tool
  20. cap — a lid
  21. ball — a dance
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. degree — an amount
  24. current — happening now

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