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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. bound — certain
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. ball — a dance
  7. staff — employees
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. degree — from a university
  11. staff — a stick
  12. bound — tied together
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. bound — obliged
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. shower — to wash
  17. degree — temperature
  18. ball — a great time
  19. degree — an amount
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — a measure
  22. shower — rain
  23. staff — employees
  24. mouse — the animal

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