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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. staff — employees
  3. spring — the season
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. rock — music
  6. chest — a box
  7. row — to paddle
  8. rock — a stone
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. chest — of your body
  13. staff — a stick
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. row — a line
  17. chest — of your body
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. degree — an amount
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. spring — of water
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. staff — employees
  24. spring — a coil

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