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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.

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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 · leaves · current · last · bore · degree · band · squash

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. current — of water
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. degree — from a university
  7. last — final
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. rush — hurry
  11. last — finally
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. bore — to drill
  14. squash — the sport
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. squash — to crush
  17. current — happening now
  18. bore — to tire
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. last — to go on
  22. degree — temperature
  23. band — a music group
  24. current — electric

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