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

Word bank: temple · last · board · degree · bulb · march

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. degree — an amount
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. last — to go on
  6. bulb — for light
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. march — the month
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. last — finally
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. board — a committee
  13. degree — temperature
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. bulb — for light
  16. degree — from a university
  17. board — to get on
  18. bulb — of a plant

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