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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. I put the bag on or beside 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. chair — a professorship
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — part of the head
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — the season
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. net — in sport
  10. court — of a king
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. spring — of water
  13. chair — a leader
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. face — to confront
  17. court — of law
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. court — for sport
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — for catching
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. chair — to sit on

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