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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: wind · vault · pit · lie · temple · degree · ball · current

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. pit — a hole
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. degree — temperature
  7. vault — a safe
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. current — happening now
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. current — of water
  14. wind — moving air
  15. current — electric
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pit — in a race
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. ball — a great time
  20. ball — a dance
  21. degree — an amount
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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