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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: cell · degree · leaves · shower · deal · straw · plane · face

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. deal — to handle
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. degree — an amount
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. face — part of the head
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. face — to confront
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. plane — a tool
  14. degree — from a university
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — a phone
  18. face — to point toward
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. shower — rain
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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