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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. degree — temperature
  4. pitch — completely
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. row — to paddle
  8. object — a thing
  9. object — an aim
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. degree — an amount
  12. object — to protest
  13. row — a line
  14. content — happy
  15. lean — thin
  16. lean — to bend
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. content — the amount
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. row — a quarrel

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