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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: degree · chair · wind · current · saw · band · temple · mouse

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. degree — from a university
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. chair — a leader
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — an amount
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. wind — moving air
  11. current — electric
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. current — of water
  14. band — a ring
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. current — happening now
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. band — a music group
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wind — moving air
  24. chair — to sit on

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