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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 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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. last — final
  4. ground — the earth
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. last — finally
  8. ground — a position
  9. last — to go on
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. snap — to click
  18. ground — crushed

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