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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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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: clip · craft · degree · wind · mate · rest · temple · date

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wind — moving air
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — a video
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. degree — temperature
  9. rest — what's left
  10. craft — a skill
  11. mate — a partner
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. degree — from a university
  16. date — the fruit
  17. mate — to breed
  18. degree — an amount
  19. mate — a friend
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. craft — boats
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rest — a break
  24. temple — side of the head

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