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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  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. pop — music
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. degree — an amount
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. pop — soda
  10. lean — thin
  11. degree — temperature
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. last — final
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. hand — in cards
  16. last — to go on
  17. hand — help
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. pop — to visit
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. last — finally
  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