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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: spring · chair · fall · band · bay · mark · degree · fan

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. band — a music group
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. band — a ring
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fall — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. degree — an amount
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. spring — the season
  16. degree — temperature
  17. mark — a trace
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. mark — a grade
  22. degree — from a university
  23. chair — a leader
  24. band — a rubber band

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