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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — in cards
  4. fall — to drop
  5. stock — goods
  6. ground — a position
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. lean — thin
  9. degree — temperature
  10. ground — the earth
  11. stock — shares
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. face — to confront
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. fall — to drop
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. face — part of the head
  20. hand — help
  21. fall — the season
  22. face — to point toward
  23. degree — an amount
  24. degree — from a university

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