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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. track — a path
  6. track — a song
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. press — to push
  9. plane — a tool
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. rest — what's left
  12. court — for sport
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. press — a publisher
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. track — to keep track
  18. press — newspapers
  19. sharp — clever
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. court — of law
  22. court — of a king
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — a break

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