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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. lean — thin
  4. stock — shares
  5. degree — an amount
  6. sharp — clever
  7. pop — to visit
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. swing — in golf
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. lean — to bend
  17. stock — goods
  18. swing — music
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. degree — temperature
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. pop — music
  24. lean — to rest against

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