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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: foot · pass · tear · bowl · degree · vault · last · lean

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. degree — from a university
  8. last — to go on
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. vault — a safe
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. foot — a measure
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pass — a permit
  19. tear — to rip
  20. degree — an amount
  21. lean — to bend
  22. last — finally
  23. lean — thin
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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