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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. net — in sport
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. last — to go on
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. net — after costs
  8. degree — an amount
  9. last — finally
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. degree — from a university
  13. lean — thin
  14. last — final
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. net — for catching
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. degree — temperature
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. stem — to come from

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