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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: pound · degree · snap · bound · race · capital · temple · ball

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. capital — money
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. ball — a great time
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bound — obliged
  9. race — humankind
  10. degree — an amount
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. bound — certain
  13. race — the arms race
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. ball — a dance
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. race — a contest
  20. capital — a city
  21. pound — a weight
  22. snap — to click
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bound — tied together

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