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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: degree · spring · board · lean · band · scale · stick · shower

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. lean — thin
  4. board — to get on
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. band — a ring
  7. spring — the season
  8. band — a music group
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. spring — a coil
  13. scale — size or range
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. spring — of water
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. degree — from a university
  18. scale — in music
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. degree — an amount
  21. board — a committee
  22. degree — temperature
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — to wash

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