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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. firm — steady
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. file — a tool
  5. squash — to crush
  6. firm — decided
  7. firm — a company
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. squash — the sport
  11. craft — boats
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. file — a line of people
  14. toast — bread
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. file — a document
  20. craft — a skill
  21. staff — a stick
  22. mine — for digging
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. mine — an explosive

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