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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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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: degree · cap · staff · bear · nail · plane · rush · file

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. rush — hurry
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. bear — the animal
  6. staff — a stick
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. cap — a hat
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a document
  11. staff — employees
  12. cap — of ice
  13. cap — a lid
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. file — a line of people
  17. staff — employees
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. plane — a tool
  20. bear — the animal
  21. degree — temperature
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. degree — an amount
  24. degree — from a university

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