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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
468
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: drill · mine · degree · pop · arm · plane · deal · stem

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — from a university
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — soda
  8. degree — temperature
  9. deal — to handle
  10. pop — to visit
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. mine — for digging
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. drill — a practice
  17. stem — to come from
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. plane — a tool
  23. drill — the tool
  24. plane — an aircraft

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