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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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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. present — a gift
  3. lean — to bend
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wax — to grow
  6. degree — an amount
  7. lean — thin
  8. degree — temperature
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. rest — a break
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. present — there
  17. present — the time now
  18. lie — to recline
  19. wound — an injury
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. degree — from a university

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