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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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. present — a gift
  4. tube — a container
  5. ground — crushed
  6. last — final
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. present — the time now
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. tube — the underground
  12. bark — to shout
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. race — the arms race
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. race — humankind
  19. race — a contest
  20. last — to go on
  21. ground — the earth
  22. last — finally
  23. present — there
  24. ground — a position

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