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

Word bank: squash · tear · board · arm · stem · degree · lean · content

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. degree — temperature
  3. content — happy
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. tear — to rip
  6. degree — an amount
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. content — the amount
  10. squash — to crush
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. lean — to bend
  13. stem — to come from
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. tear — from crying
  17. squash — the sport
  18. board — a committee
  19. lean — thin
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. board — to get on
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. degree — from a university

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