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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: lean · stand · pop · key · hide · degree · last · bat

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pop — soda
  3. bat — the animal
  4. last — final
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. degree — an amount
  7. pop — music
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — to bend
  10. key — for a lock
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — temperature
  13. lean — thin
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. last — to go on
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. key — in music
  23. last — finally
  24. stand — on your feet

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