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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — the tool
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. mate — a friend
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. mate — a partner
  9. vault — a safe
  10. spring — a coil
  11. mate — to breed
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. stem — to come from
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — the season
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — the tool
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. drill — a practice
  24. pass — a permit

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