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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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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: shower · pit · bay · wind · straw · current · degree · wake

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. current — happening now
  4. shower — rain
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. degree — an amount
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. current — of water
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. wind — moving air
  13. degree — temperature
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. current — electric
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. pit — a hole
  23. degree — from a university
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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