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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: race · degree · temple · bowl · band · ball · spell · ground

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. band — a ring
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. race — the arms race
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. ball — a great time
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. degree — temperature
  13. spell — letters
  14. race — humankind
  15. ground — a position
  16. spell — magic
  17. degree — from a university
  18. ground — the earth
  19. degree — an amount
  20. race — a contest
  21. ground — crushed
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. band — a music group

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