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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. game — a match
  3. club — for golf
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cell — a phone
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. degree — from a university
  10. club — a group
  11. chest — a box
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. mug — to rob
  15. chest — of your body
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mug — a face
  18. degree — temperature
  19. mug — a cup
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. club — for dancing
  22. degree — an amount
  23. cell — in biology
  24. temple — a place of worship

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