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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: leaves · wave · spring · saw · cell · coach · degree · shower

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. spring — the season
  5. degree — from a university
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. spring — of water
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. degree — temperature
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. saw — the tool
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cell — a phone
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. shower — rain
  18. spring — a coil
  19. degree — an amount
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. shower — to wash
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. cell — in biology
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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