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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
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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: snap · craft · arm · court · degree · mug · spring · trunk

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  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. court — of law
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. craft — boats
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — for sport
  6. spring — the season
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. snap — to click
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. mug — to rob
  12. mug — a face
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. mug — a cup
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. degree — temperature
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. degree — an amount
  19. craft — a skill
  20. spring — of water
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. trunk — of a car
  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