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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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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: tear · root · plane · court · snap · dip · degree · vault

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. tear — from crying
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. tear — to rip
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. plane — a tool
  8. court — of a king
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. court — of law
  11. root — of a plant
  12. degree — temperature
  13. tear — from crying
  14. root — of a word
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. court — for sport
  18. root — the cause
  19. dip — to sink
  20. vault — a safe
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. degree — an amount
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. snap — to click

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