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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: field · charge · mate · tear · bound · club · current · degree

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. charge — a price
  3. tear — from crying
  4. field — farmland
  5. current — of water
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — certain
  9. club — for golf
  10. field — for sport
  11. tear — from crying
  12. club — for dancing
  13. tear — to rip
  14. current — electric
  15. bound — tied together
  16. degree — temperature
  17. charge — electricity
  18. club — a group
  19. current — happening now
  20. field — a subject
  21. charge — in control
  22. mate — a partner
  23. mate — a friend
  24. degree — an amount

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