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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: fall · rash · pitcher · mate · current · key · straw · degree

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  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. mate — a friend
  2. current — happening now
  3. rash — a series
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. key — in music
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. degree — temperature
  8. current — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. rash — hasty
  11. fall — to drop
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. fall — to drop
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — from a university
  17. key — for a lock
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. current — electric
  20. key — the most important part
  21. mate — to breed
  22. fall — the season
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  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