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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 116 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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rash — hasty
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. board — to get on
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. degree — from a university
  9. firm — a company
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. firm — decided
  13. firm — steady
  14. degree — temperature
  15. lean — to bend
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — an illness
  19. rash — a series
  20. dip — to sink
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. lean — thin
  24. board — a committee

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