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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: bear · spell · temple · kid · plane · degree · tear · cue

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. tear — from crying
  3. degree — an amount
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. cue — for pool
  6. spell — letters
  7. bear — the animal
  8. kid — child
  9. degree — temperature
  10. tear — to rip
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bear — the animal
  13. kid — to tease
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. plane — a tool
  16. tear — from crying
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. spell — a short time
  19. degree — from a university
  20. spell — magic
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. cue — a signal

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