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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 who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. fall — to drop
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. charge — a price
  5. fall — the season
  6. game — wild animals
  7. degree — from a university
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bat — the animal
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. lean — thin
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. charge — in control
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. degree — an amount
  19. degree — temperature
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. fall — to drop
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. game — a match
  24. charge — electricity

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