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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: craft · patient · cap · degree · dip · spring · ground · stand

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. craft — a skill
  4. degree — an amount
  5. craft — boats
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. stand — to bear
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. spring — of water
  10. cap — a hat
  11. ground — the earth
  12. spring — the season
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. spring — a coil
  15. cap — of ice
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ground — a position
  18. degree — temperature
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. ground — crushed
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. degree — from a university
  24. dip — to sink

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