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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — for sport
  5. chip — to eat
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stock — shares
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. tear — from crying
  11. date — the fruit
  12. field — a subject
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. tear — to rip
  15. rule — government
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. tear — from crying
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. chip — for betting
  22. rule — a law
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. stock — goods

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