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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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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: squash · fall · plane · degree · net · safe · root · rest

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. net — after costs
  3. fall — the season
  4. rest — what's left
  5. fall — to drop
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — in sport
  8. plane — a tool
  9. degree — an amount
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. degree — temperature
  12. squash — the sport
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. fall — to drop
  15. root — the cause
  16. rest — what's left
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — of a plant
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. rest — a break
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. squash — to crush
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. squash — the vegetable

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