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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. band — a ring
  3. chest — of your body
  4. prune — to trim
  5. degree — temperature
  6. plane — a tool
  7. prune — to trim
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. cue — a hint
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — from a university
  13. band — a music group
  14. spell — magic
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. spell — letters
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. cue — for pool
  19. chest — of your body
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cue — a signal
  23. chest — a box
  24. arm — a part of something

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