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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — to bend
  5. spring — of water
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. degree — an amount
  9. spring — a coil
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. degree — from a university
  12. spring — the season
  13. scale — in music
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. capital — a city
  17. scale — size or range
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. lean — thin
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. deal — to handle
  24. capital — money

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