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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 120 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: chair · temple · mine · mug · degree · net · spell · drill

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. net — after costs
  3. degree — from a university
  4. drill — army training
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. drill — the tool
  7. degree — an amount
  8. drill — a practice
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. net — for catching
  11. spell — magic
  12. chair — a leader
  13. mine — for digging
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. mug — to rob
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mug — a face
  19. spell — a short time
  20. net — in sport
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. spell — letters
  24. mug — a cup

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