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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. stock — shares
  4. spring — a coil
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. bass — the fish
  7. object — to protest
  8. spring — the season
  9. net — in sport
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wind — moving air
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. object — a thing
  14. net — for catching
  15. object — an aim
  16. net — after costs
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bass — low music
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. spring — of water
  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