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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. ground — a position
  5. perch — the fish
  6. tube — the underground
  7. tube — a container
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. ground — the earth
  11. chip — for betting
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. track — to keep track
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. ground — crushed
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. stock — shares
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. chip — to eat
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. stock — goods
  23. kick — in football
  24. kick — with a leg

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