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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. net — after costs
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. lean — to bend
  5. net — in sport
  6. cell — in biology
  7. degree — an amount
  8. cell — a phone
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. tear — to rip
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bound — certain
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bound — obliged
  17. net — for catching
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. degree — from a university
  20. lean — thin
  21. bound — tied together
  22. tear — from crying
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. wind — moving air

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