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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.

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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: firm · object · degree · shower · cap · dip · spring · court

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. degree — from a university
  4. object — a thing
  5. court — of law
  6. shower — to wash
  7. degree — temperature
  8. firm — decided
  9. firm — steady
  10. object — to protest
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. cap — a hat
  13. spring — of water
  14. court — for sport
  15. cap — of ice
  16. degree — an amount
  17. firm — a company
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. spring — the season
  20. shower — rain
  21. object — an aim
  22. court — of a king
  23. dip — to sink
  24. spring — a coil

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