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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. rule — government
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. rule — a law
  6. bass — low music
  7. press — a publisher
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. chest — a box
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. club — for golf
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. wax — to grow
  17. club — a group
  18. bass — the fish
  19. press — to push
  20. chest — of your body
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. club — for dancing
  23. press — newspapers
  24. wax — for sculpting

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