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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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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: temple · hide · file · shower · degree · ruler

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. degree — from a university
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. file — a document
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. degree — an amount
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — to wash
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. degree — temperature
  16. file — a line of people
  17. shower — rain
  18. file — a tool

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