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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — a stone
  5. hand — help
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. degree — temperature
  8. lean — thin
  9. tube — the underground
  10. hand — in cards
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. rock — music
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. lean — to bend
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. tube — a container
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. degree — an amount
  24. hand — part of the body

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