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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: fan · coach · spring · march · ruler · wave · stick · degree

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. degree — from a university
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spring — of water
  11. march — the month
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. march — music
  16. spring — the season
  17. degree — an amount
  18. march — the month
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. degree — temperature
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. wave — with your hand

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