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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: ruler · tear · capital · degree · deal · current · wound · lean

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  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. lean — thin
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. tear — to rip
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — money
  9. capital — a city
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. current — happening now
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. wound — an injury
  14. lean — to bend
  15. degree — an amount
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. tear — from crying
  18. current — of water
  19. current — electric
  20. degree — temperature
  21. tear — from crying
  22. deal — to handle
  23. deal — an agreement
  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