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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: rush · straw · rash · kid · degree · ground · cap · current

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. cap — a lid
  4. rash — a series
  5. current — happening now
  6. kid — to tease
  7. current — of water
  8. rash — hasty
  9. degree — an amount
  10. degree — from a university
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. rush — hurry
  13. cap — of ice
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cap — a hat
  16. ground — the earth
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. ground — a position
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. current — electric
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. kid — child
  23. ground — crushed
  24. rash — on the skin

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