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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. sharp — clever
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. file — a line of people
  5. file — a document
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. march — music
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. file — a tool
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. date — the fruit

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