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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pop — soda
  4. mark — a grade
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. mark — a trace
  8. race — a contest
  9. spring — of water
  10. root — of a word
  11. plane — a tool
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. content — the amount
  14. pop — music
  15. content — happy
  16. root — the cause
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. spring — a coil
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — humankind
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. root — of a plant
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. spring — the season

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