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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: root · temple · net · fork · degree · fall · bark · date

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. root — of a plant
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — temperature
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bark — to shout
  8. fall — to drop
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. root — of a word
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — after costs
  13. fall — the season
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. date — the fruit
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. root — the cause
  22. net — in sport
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. degree — from a university

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