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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: present · hand · lash · bulb · mate · degree · snap · temple

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  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. snap — to click
  2. hand — in cards
  3. present — a gift
  4. hand — help
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. degree — temperature
  9. mate — to breed
  10. bulb — for light
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. degree — from a university
  15. mate — a partner
  16. present — the time now
  17. present — there
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. mate — a friend
  22. bulb — for light
  23. temple — a place of worship
  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