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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 120 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. last — to go on
  4. bound — certain
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — the amount
  7. snap — to click
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — obliged
  14. content — happy
  15. degree — an amount
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. degree — temperature
  18. plane — a tool
  19. degree — from a university
  20. mine — for digging
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. temple — a place of worship

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