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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 116 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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wake — a trail
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. bound — obliged
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. degree — an amount
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bound — tied together
  10. degree — from a university
  11. spring — the season
  12. degree — temperature
  13. spring — a coil
  14. present — the time now
  15. present — there
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. stand — to bear
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bound — certain
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. plane — a tool
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. present — a gift

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