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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to click
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. spell — letters
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. track — a song
  8. spell — magic
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. press — a publisher
  11. spell — a short time
  12. degree — temperature
  13. track — to keep track
  14. press — newspapers
  15. degree — an amount
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. press — to push
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. stand — to bear
  21. degree — from a university
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. track — a path
  24. stand — for spectators

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