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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. land — a country
  3. cold — not warm
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. shower — rain
  7. cold — an illness
  8. land — ground
  9. rock — a stone
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. rock — music
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. sharp — clever
  14. pass — a permit
  15. shower — to wash
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — to recline
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. lie — an untruth

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