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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: squash · wound · degree · charge · current · chest · leaves · craft

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  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. leaves — lets stay
  2. chest — of your body
  3. degree — from a university
  4. wound — an injury
  5. craft — boats
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. degree — temperature
  8. current — of water
  9. current — electric
  10. charge — a price
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. wound — an injury
  16. craft — a skill
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. degree — an amount
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. charge — electricity
  22. charge — in control
  23. craft — a handicraft
  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