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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. content — happy
  3. bulb — for light
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. plane — a tool
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. game — wild animals
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. bulb — for light
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. game — a match
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. content — the amount
  22. chair — a leader
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. snap — to click

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