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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: root · key · snap · degree · rash · wound · wind · lean

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. degree — an amount
  4. degree — temperature
  5. root — of a word
  6. lean — thin
  7. key — the most important part
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. key — in music
  14. wind — moving air
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. snap — to click
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. lean — to bend
  19. degree — from a university
  20. wound — an injury
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a plant
  23. key — for a lock
  24. rash — hasty

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