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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  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. temple — a place of worship
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — an illness
  4. pass — a permit
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. spell — letters
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. cold — not warm
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. capital — money
  11. file — a document
  12. spell — magic
  13. file — a line of people
  14. capital — a city
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. spell — a short time
  20. file — a tool
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. arm — a part of something
  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