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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: rest · bulb · degree · chest · row · dip · lean · squash

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. rest — what's left
  3. row — a line
  4. rest — what's left
  5. chest — of your body
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. dip — to sink
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — temperature
  13. squash — the sport
  14. lean — thin
  15. row — to paddle
  16. squash — to crush
  17. bulb — for light
  18. chest — a box
  19. lean — to bend
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. rest — a break
  24. chest — of your body

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