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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bank — for money
  3. chair — a leader
  4. degree — temperature
  5. spring — the season
  6. bat — the animal
  7. plane — a tool
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bank — of a river
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. degree — from a university
  19. bank — for money
  20. degree — an amount
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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