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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. lean — to bend
  4. charge — electricity
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. court — of law
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. sharp — clever
  11. court — of a king
  12. degree — temperature
  13. charge — a price
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. race — the arms race
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. degree — from a university
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. race — a contest
  20. race — humankind
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. charge — in control
  23. court — for sport
  24. degree — an amount

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