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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 120 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: court · degree · bulb · plane · band · bank · arm · cold

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. plane — a tool
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bulb — for light
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. court — of law
  7. band — a ring
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cold — not warm
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — of a river
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. band — a music group
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bank — for money
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. bulb — for light
  22. degree — from a university
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — part of the body

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