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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. tube — the underground
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. sharp — clever
  13. net — for catching
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bark — to shout
  16. net — after costs
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. net — in sport
  24. tube — a container

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