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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 · pit · straw · fork · race · jam · degree · hand

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pit — in a race
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pit — a hole
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. hand — help
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. race — the arms race
  16. degree — temperature
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. race — a contest
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. race — humankind
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — from a university
  24. jam — in traffic

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