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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. drill — the tool
  3. clip — to cut
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. pop — to visit
  7. drill — army training
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. clip — for paper
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — after costs
  12. pop — soda
  13. last — to go on
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. last — final
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. bank — of a river
  18. clip — a video
  19. bank — for money
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. bank — for money
  22. net — for catching
  23. drill — a practice
  24. last — finally

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