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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: tear · spring · plane · degree · calf · wake · field · racket

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. field — a subject
  3. tear — to rip
  4. plane — a tool
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. field — farmland
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. degree — an amount
  9. field — for sport
  10. degree — temperature
  11. spring — of water
  12. degree — from a university
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. spring — the season
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. spring — a coil

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