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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: stick · pass · chest · straw · degree · lean · bowl · tube

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. chest — of your body
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — thin
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. degree — from a university
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. chest — a box
  16. pass — a permit
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. degree — temperature
  21. chest — of your body
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. tube — a container
  24. tube — the underground

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