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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. date — the fruit
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. mine — for digging
  8. cue — a hint
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. plane — a tool
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. land — ground
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. land — to come down
  17. cue — a signal
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. cue — for pool
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. dip — to sink
  23. perch — the fish
  24. land — a country

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