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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: plane · rash · fall · patient · degree · date · land · snap

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. land — a country
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to click
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. plane — a tool
  7. fall — to drop
  8. degree — an amount
  9. fall — to drop
  10. land — to come down
  11. degree — temperature
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. rash — a series
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — the fruit
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. land — ground
  20. fall — the season
  21. degree — from a university
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — hasty
  24. date — on the calendar

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