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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. lean — to bend
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. plane — a tool
  5. degree — an amount
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. lean — thin
  9. can — to be able to
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. chest — of your body
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bear — the animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. stem — to come from
  18. degree — from a university
  19. can — a tin
  20. bear — the animal
  21. degree — temperature
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sports field

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