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

Word bank: temple · degree · lie · cell · fork · rest

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — from a university
  6. fork — in a road
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. cell — a phone
  9. degree — an amount
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — what's left
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. rest — a break
  18. cell — in biology

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