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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. bear — the animal
  3. spell — a short time
  4. squash — to crush
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bear — the animal
  8. degree — from a university
  9. spell — letters
  10. squash — the sport
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. content — happy
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. lean — thin
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. content — the amount
  22. kick — in football
  23. degree — an amount
  24. spell — magic

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