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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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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. cap — a lid
  3. degree — temperature
  4. march — the month
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. march — music
  7. fork — in a road
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. march — the month
  13. degree — from a university
  14. stem — to come from
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. mine — for digging
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. cap — a hat
  22. degree — an amount
  23. cap — of ice
  24. temple — a place of worship

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