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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: kick · lie · lean · degree · vault · wound · snap · saw

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. wound — an injury
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lie — to recline
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. saw — the tool
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. degree — from a university
  9. vault — a safe
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. saw — the tool
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. degree — an amount
  21. lean — thin
  22. wound — an injury
  23. degree — temperature
  24. snap — to click

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