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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mate — a friend
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. club — for golf
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. club — for dancing
  8. row — a line
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. mate — a partner
  12. press — newspapers
  13. club — a group
  14. press — a publisher
  15. court — of a king
  16. row — to paddle
  17. press — to push
  18. court — for sport
  19. mate — to breed
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. date — the fruit
  22. stem — to come from
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. court — of law

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