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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: bat · degree · temple · rest · wake · bulb · stock · fan

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. rest — a break
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. stock — shares
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. wake — a trail
  14. bulb — for light
  15. degree — an amount
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. stock — goods
  20. rest — what's left
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. bat — the animal
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. bulb — for light

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