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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pass — a permit
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. march — the month
  5. branch — a division
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. last — final
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. march — the month
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. last — to go on
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. march — music
  19. last — finally
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. toast — bread
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. pound — a weight
  24. branch — of a bank

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