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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: race · mug · spring · lean · degree · hide · content · bore

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. lean — thin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. mug — a cup
  9. degree — from a university
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — the arms race
  14. spring — of water
  15. bore — to drill
  16. mug — a face
  17. degree — an amount
  18. content — happy
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. race — humankind
  21. content — the amount
  22. degree — temperature
  23. mug — to rob
  24. bore — to tire

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