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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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 — to rule out
  3. key — the most important part
  4. rule — a law
  5. key — for a lock
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. sharp — clever
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. drill — the tool
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. pitch — completely
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. ground — a position
  18. key — in music
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. ground — crushed
  21. drill — a practice
  22. rule — government
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. drill — army training

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