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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 120 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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. season — in sport
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — crushed
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. plane — a tool
  8. clip — to cut
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. clip — for paper
  12. shower — rain
  13. ground — a position
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — the cause
  16. season — of the year
  17. root — of a plant
  18. clip — a video
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. plane — an aircraft

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