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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. spring — a coil
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bound — tied together
  5. degree — temperature
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. kid — child
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. kid — to tease
  11. staff — a stick
  12. staff — employees
  13. lean — to bend
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. spring — the season
  16. bound — obliged
  17. spring — of water
  18. pound — a weight
  19. lean — thin
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. rock — music
  22. staff — employees
  23. bound — certain
  24. rock — a stone

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