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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: temple · lean · object · shower · degree · race · lie · perch

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. object — an aim
  3. lean — thin
  4. perch — the fish
  5. degree — an amount
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. lean — to bend
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. object — to protest
  13. degree — from a university
  14. race — humankind
  15. shower — to wash
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. race — the arms race
  19. degree — temperature
  20. object — a thing
  21. shower — rain
  22. lie — to recline
  23. race — a contest
  24. perch — for a bird

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