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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. degree — an amount
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bark — to shout
  5. board — to get on
  6. degree — temperature
  7. tear — from crying
  8. snap — to click
  9. last — to go on
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. object — an aim
  12. lean — to bend
  13. degree — from a university
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. object — to protest
  16. last — final
  17. board — a committee
  18. last — finally
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. tear — to rip
  22. object — a thing
  23. lean — thin
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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