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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 116 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. kick — in football
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bound — certain
  6. plane — a tool
  7. club — for dancing
  8. club — for golf
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. bound — obliged
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. lean — thin
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — temperature
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. bound — tied together
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. degree — an amount
  23. wax — to grow
  24. club — a group

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