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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. wound — an injury
  5. cell — in biology
  6. ground — a position
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. last — finally
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. last — final
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wound — an injury
  16. ground — the earth
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. last — to go on
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. date — the fruit
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rush — hurry
  24. date — on the calendar

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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