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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. track — a path
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. bat — the animal
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. track — a song
  9. net — after costs
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — humankind
  12. ground — the earth
  13. sharp — clever
  14. rest — what's left
  15. ground — a position
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. net — in sport
  20. ground — crushed
  21. track — to keep track
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. net — for catching

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