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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. rock — music
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. craft — boats
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. capital — money
  9. net — after costs
  10. root — of a plant
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. net — for catching
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. root — the cause
  16. net — in sport
  17. capital — a city
  18. rock — a stone
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. root — of a word
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. craft — a skill

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