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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.

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: current · wake · coach · mine · hide · fan · degree · rash

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. rash — hasty
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. wake — a trail
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. current — electric
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. current — happening now
  11. degree — an amount
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. mine — for digging
  17. degree — temperature
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. rash — a series
  20. degree — from a university
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. current — of water

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