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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. drill — a practice
  3. bound — obliged
  4. last — finally
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. drill — the tool
  7. band — a ring
  8. bound — certain
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a line of people
  11. bound — tied together
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. last — final
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. last — to go on
  16. band — a music group
  17. drill — army training
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. spell — letters
  21. file — a document
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. date — the fruit
  24. spell — magic

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