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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · lean · plane · wound · degree · present · spring · snap

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. plane — a tool
  3. court — for sport
  4. lean — thin
  5. present — there
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. degree — temperature
  11. lean — to bend
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. wound — an injury
  14. present — the time now
  15. present — a gift
  16. court — of a king
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. court — of law
  19. spring — of water
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. spring — the season
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. spring — a coil
  24. degree — from a university

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