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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. lean — thin
  3. clip — to cut
  4. degree — an amount
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — temperature
  9. mark — a trace
  10. ground — a position
  11. rash — a series
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. ground — crushed
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. wake — a trail
  17. clip — for paper
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. ground — the earth
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. mark — a grade
  23. clip — a video
  24. rash — hasty

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