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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · degree · wave · toast · lean · bark

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. degree — from a university
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. kick — in football
  10. lean — to bend
  11. lean — thin
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. degree — temperature
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. toast — a drink to someone

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