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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  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. rush — hurry
  2. wound — an injury
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. tube — a container
  6. wound — an injury
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. stem — to come from
  9. wax — to grow
  10. capital — a city
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. tube — the underground
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. chip — to eat
  16. capital — money
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. chip — for betting
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. temple — a place of worship
  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