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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: wind · pitcher · tear · temple · cabinet · fine · toast · degree

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. degree — temperature
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. fine — all right
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. degree — an amount
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. toast — bread
  22. wind — moving air
  23. fine — high quality
  24. pitcher — a jug

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