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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 120 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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. can — a tin
  3. plane — a tool
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — for digging
  7. can — to be able to
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. degree — temperature
  10. chest — a box
  11. spring — the season
  12. degree — an amount
  13. spring — a coil
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. chest — of your body
  17. can — a tin
  18. chest — of your body
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — the animal
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. degree — from a university
  24. spring — of water

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