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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. last — to go on
  3. row — a line
  4. row — to paddle
  5. shower — to wash
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. rash — hasty
  9. cell — a phone
  10. race — humankind
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. shower — rain
  15. cell — in biology
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. last — finally
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. date — the fruit
  20. race — the arms race
  21. last — final
  22. rash — a series
  23. race — a contest
  24. rash — on the skin

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