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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: degree · cell · temple · patient · squash · snap · stem · bay

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. 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. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to click
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the sport
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. degree — from a university
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. stem — to come from
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — an amount
  24. 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