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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: wake · chest · lean · degree · snap · ruler · bulb · foot

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wake — a trail
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — thin
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. bulb — for light
  9. chest — of your body
  10. snap — to click
  11. degree — temperature
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. degree — from a university
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — a box
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — a measure
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. ruler — for measuring

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