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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: game · squash · degree · temple · bat · tube · pitcher · bulb

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. degree — temperature
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bulb — for light
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. tube — the underground
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. game — a match
  17. squash — the sport
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. game — wild animals
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bulb — for light
  22. squash — to crush
  23. tube — a container
  24. degree — an amount

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