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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.

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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: net · spring · chair · present · object · safe · fall · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. object — a thing
  4. chair — a leader
  5. object — an aim
  6. fall — to drop
  7. net — in sport
  8. spring — a coil
  9. fall — the season
  10. net — for catching
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. present — a gift
  13. fall — to drop
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. spring — the season
  16. object — to protest
  17. degree — temperature
  18. present — there
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. net — after costs
  23. present — the time now
  24. spring — of water

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