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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: hand · toast · arm · plane · fork · chest · season · degree

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. season — in sport
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. chest — of your body
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. hand — in cards
  8. season — of the year
  9. degree — from a university
  10. chest — a box
  11. degree — temperature
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. degree — an amount
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. plane — a tool
  18. fork — in a road
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. toast — bread
  24. plane — in geometry

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