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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. swing — to play on
  3. cell — in biology
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. rule — government
  6. file — a document
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. file — a tool
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. cell — a phone
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. rule — a law
  16. swing — music
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. swing — in golf
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. file — a line of people

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