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

Word bank: spring · degree · tear · fork · craft · lash

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — from a university
  5. tear — from crying
  6. craft — a skill
  7. degree — an amount
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. fork — in a road
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. craft — boats
  16. spring — the season
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip

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