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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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468
Word bank
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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. stock — goods
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bulb — for light
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bulb — for light
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. spell — letters
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. kid — to tease
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. degree — from a university
  17. stock — shares
  18. degree — an amount
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. degree — temperature
  24. kid — child

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