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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. last — to go on
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. stem — to come from
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — of the year
  10. degree — temperature
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. degree — from a university
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. last — finally
  15. firm — steady
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. chest — of your body
  19. degree — an amount
  20. firm — a company
  21. last — final
  22. chest — of your body
  23. lie — to recline
  24. chest — a box

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