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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: shower · spring · degree · sharp · patient · present · swing · ruler

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  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. spring — of water
  2. swing — in golf
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. degree — temperature
  6. present — the time now
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. present — a gift
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. shower — rain
  12. spring — the season
  13. degree — an amount
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. present — there
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — to play on
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. spring — a coil
  23. sharp — clever
  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