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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 120 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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. chip — for betting
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. current — happening now
  5. current — of water
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. current — electric
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. band — a ring
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — to come from
  20. chip — to eat
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. band — a music group
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. calf — a young animal

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