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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: degree · bear · rash · temple · can · mine · file · land

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bear — the animal
  4. land — to come down
  5. rash — hasty
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bear — the animal
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. file — a document
  10. land — ground
  11. degree — an amount
  12. rash — a series
  13. degree — from a university
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. can — a tin
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. land — a country
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. can — a tin
  21. mine — for digging
  22. file — a line of people
  23. can — to be able to
  24. mine — belonging to me

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