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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. key — in music
  4. rule — government
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to click
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. wax — to grow
  9. mate — to breed
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. mate — a friend
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. rule — a law
  17. key — the most important part
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. sharp — clever
  22. cold — an illness
  23. key — for a lock
  24. mate — a partner

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