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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 116 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: degree · chair · tear · squash · rock · deal · lean · mark

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the sport
  3. tear — from crying
  4. degree — temperature
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. mark — a trace
  11. tear — from crying
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. degree — from a university
  14. chair — a leader
  15. lean — to bend
  16. rock — music
  17. degree — an amount
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. tear — to rip
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. deal — to handle
  23. rock — a stone
  24. lean — thin

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