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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. spring — of water
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — of ice
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. toast — bread
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. can — to be able to
  12. can — a tin
  13. wax — to grow
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bore — to drill
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a line
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. spring — the season
  21. can — a tin
  22. spring — a coil
  23. cap — a hat
  24. wax — for sculpting

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