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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: degree · safe · file · craft · hand · stem · court · saw

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a document
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. court — of a king
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. court — of law
  8. stem — to come from
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. hand — in cards
  11. degree — from a university
  12. file — a line of people
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. saw — the tool
  15. craft — a skill
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. court — for sport
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. craft — boats
  20. saw — the tool
  21. degree — temperature
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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