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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. bank — for money
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. pitch — completely
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bank — of a river
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. ball — a dance
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bank — for money
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. degree — from a university
  18. lean — thin
  19. chest — of your body
  20. ball — a great time
  21. kick — in football
  22. chest — a box
  23. degree — an amount
  24. pitcher — a jug

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