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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 · degree · march · snap · cap · ruler

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. march — the month
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. degree — temperature
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. march — the month
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — an amount
  16. march — music
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — for measuring

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