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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. land — a country
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. spell — magic
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. spring — the season
  9. band — a ring
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. bound — tied together
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. land — to come down
  14. bound — obliged
  15. spring — of water
  16. bound — certain
  17. spell — letters
  18. band — a music group
  19. club — for dancing
  20. spell — a short time
  21. spring — a coil
  22. club — a group
  23. land — ground
  24. club — for golf

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