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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — final
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. bound — certain
  7. race — the arms race
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a match
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bound — obliged
  14. last — finally
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. race — humankind
  17. bound — tied together
  18. race — a contest

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