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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pop · face · cap · race · temple · patient · degree · spring

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — the season
  4. face — part of the head
  5. degree — from a university
  6. cap — a lid
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. pop — music
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. race — a contest
  11. face — to point toward
  12. degree — temperature
  13. race — the arms race
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. spring — a coil
  16. degree — an amount
  17. cap — a hat
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. race — humankind
  20. cap — of ice
  21. face — to confront
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. pop — to visit
  24. patient — a sick person

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