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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 120 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. present — there
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. ground — crushed
  7. ground — the earth
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a song
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bore — to tire
  12. present — the time now
  13. rash — a series
  14. bore — to drill
  15. fork — in a road
  16. degree — from a university
  17. lean — thin
  18. degree — an amount
  19. rash — hasty
  20. ground — a position
  21. present — a gift
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. track — a path
  24. degree — temperature

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