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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 120 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 · spring · field · stand · leaves · fan · plane · mine

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — of water
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — for sport
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. degree — from a university
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. field — farmland
  17. mine — for digging
  18. degree — temperature
  19. spring — the season
  20. degree — an amount
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. plane — a tool
  23. stand — to bear
  24. leaves — of a tree

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