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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: temple · cold · fine · pass · present · degree · roll · swing

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. pass — a permit
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. fine — high quality
  6. cold — an illness
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — a gift
  9. swing — music
  10. roll — a cake
  11. present — there
  12. degree — temperature
  13. swing — in golf
  14. roll — a list
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. fine — all right
  17. cold — not warm
  18. degree — an amount
  19. swing — to play on
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. temple — a place of worship

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