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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: wound · board · spring · arm · lie · plane · degree · shower

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  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. lie — to recline
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. degree — an amount
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. wound — an injury
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. spring — the season
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. shower — rain
  14. board — a committee
  15. spring — of water
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. degree — temperature
  19. degree — from a university
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. spring — a coil
  22. board — to get on
  23. plane — a tool
  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