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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: current · face · craft · degree · hand · prune · straw · chair

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. hand — help
  3. degree — an amount
  4. chair — a leader
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. craft — a skill
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. hand — in cards
  10. face — to point toward
  11. craft — boats
  12. face — to confront
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. current — electric
  17. degree — from a university
  18. prune — to trim
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. current — happening now
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. face — part of the head
  23. current — of water
  24. straw — a straw man

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