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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. saw — the tool
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. land — ground
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. pit — in a race
  8. cap — a hat
  9. saw — the tool
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. land — to come down
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. land — a country
  14. cap — a lid
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. cap — of ice
  19. pit — a hole
  20. clip — for paper
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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