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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 · can · band · board · spell · wound · degree · land

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. can — to be able to
  3. degree — from a university
  4. land — to come down
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. degree — temperature
  7. can — a tin
  8. degree — an amount
  9. band — a music group
  10. board — to get on
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. wound — an injury
  14. spell — a short time
  15. board — a committee
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. band — a ring
  18. land — ground
  19. land — a country
  20. spell — magic
  21. spell — letters
  22. can — a tin
  23. wound — an injury
  24. band — a rubber band

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