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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to bend
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. fine — all right
  7. degree — from a university
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. dip — to sink
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. degree — an amount
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — a subject
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. field — farmland
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. fine — high quality
  21. degree — temperature
  22. chair — a leader
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. chair — to sit on

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