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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. chip — for betting
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. sharp — clever
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. bear — the animal
  11. chip — to eat
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bear — the animal
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. spring — the season
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. degree — an amount
  19. lean — to bend
  20. spring — of water
  21. snap — to click
  22. spring — a coil
  23. kick — in football
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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