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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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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: last · mouse · mine · temple · bulb · degree · bat · fan

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. last — final
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. last — to go on
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. degree — from a university
  15. bulb — for light
  16. last — finally
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. bat — the animal
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — for digging
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. degree — an amount
  24. fan — to cool the air

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