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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. mate — to breed
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. staff — employees
  5. mate — a partner
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. mark — a grade
  9. bark — to shout
  10. court — of a king
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. pop — soda
  13. staff — a stick
  14. mate — a friend
  15. race — the arms race
  16. court — of law
  17. court — for sport
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. staff — employees
  21. mark — a trace
  22. race — humankind
  23. race — a contest
  24. pop — to visit

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