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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: temple · craft · sharp · game · pitcher · degree · ground · plane

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. sharp — clever
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. ground — crushed
  7. degree — from a university
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. craft — boats
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. degree — temperature
  14. plane — a tool
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. ground — the earth
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. game — a match
  19. ground — a position
  20. craft — a skill
  21. game — wild animals
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. degree — an amount
  24. plane — an aircraft

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