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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. key — the most important part
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. spell — a short time
  6. key — for a lock
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. degree — temperature
  9. key — in music
  10. spell — magic
  11. degree — an amount
  12. pit — a hole
  13. ball — a great time
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. spell — letters
  16. pit — in a race
  17. ball — a dance
  18. ball — a round shape

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