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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wind — moving air
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. vault — a safe
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. content — happy
  7. content — the amount
  8. scale — size or range
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. wind — moving air
  11. press — a publisher
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bass — low music
  16. band — a music group
  17. scale — in music
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. band — a ring
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. press — to push

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