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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. perch — the fish
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. march — the month
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. staff — employees
  9. land — ground
  10. wake — a trail
  11. march — the month
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. present — a gift
  14. staff — employees
  15. land — to come down
  16. cell — a phone
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. present — the time now
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. staff — a stick
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. present — there
  23. land — a country
  24. march — music

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