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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wind · current · pitcher · stand · degree · shower · content · bark

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — happy
  3. shower — rain
  4. current — happening now
  5. bark — to shout
  6. current — electric
  7. content — the amount
  8. stand — to bear
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. shower — to wash
  11. degree — from a university
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. wind — moving air
  14. degree — temperature
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. current — of water
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. degree — an amount
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. wind — to turn a key

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