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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Word bank
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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. game — a match
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. saw — the tool
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. game — wild animals
  10. root — of a plant
  11. land — to come down
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. saw — the tool
  14. land — a country
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. land — ground
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. shower — to wash
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — the cause
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. coach — a trainer

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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