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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. rule — a law
  3. sharp — clever
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. mine — for digging
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. bat — the animal
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. rule — government
  18. wake — a trail
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. safe — a strongbox

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