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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.

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: degree · safe · foot · chest · net · current · lean · cold

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. cold — not warm
  3. current — happening now
  4. net — in sport
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lean — to bend
  8. degree — from a university
  9. chest — of your body
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. degree — an amount
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. current — electric
  15. lean — thin
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. net — for catching
  18. chest — a box
  19. degree — temperature
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. foot — a measure
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. net — after costs

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