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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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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: sharp · lean · cue · tear · bat · spell · can · degree

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. cue — a hint
  3. lean — to bend
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. degree — from a university
  7. spell — letters
  8. can — to be able to
  9. cue — a signal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. degree — temperature
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lean — thin
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. spell — a short time
  18. degree — an amount
  19. cue — for pool
  20. spell — magic
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. sharp — clever
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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