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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: roll · craft · degree · last · suit · current · chest · content

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — finally
  4. suit — to fit
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. roll — a list
  7. degree — an amount
  8. current — of water
  9. suit — in cards
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. craft — boats
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. craft — a skill
  15. current — electric
  16. chest — a box
  17. current — happening now
  18. roll — a cake
  19. content — happy
  20. degree — from a university
  21. last — final
  22. suit — clothes
  23. degree — temperature
  24. content — the amount

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