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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. charge — electricity
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. scale — size or range
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pound — a weight
  10. shower — to wash
  11. row — a line
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. tube — a container
  14. tube — the underground
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. scale — in music
  18. charge — a price
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. row — to paddle
  21. shower — rain
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. charge — in control

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