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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: chair · plane · tear · degree · ball · rash · scale · date

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. degree — from a university
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — hasty
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — temperature
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. scale — in music
  13. plane — a tool
  14. chair — a leader
  15. scale — size or range
  16. ball — a dance
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. tear — to rip
  22. rash — a series
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. chair — a professorship

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