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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. content — the amount
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. bulb — for light
  6. squash — to crush
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bulb — for light
  10. content — happy
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. file — a document
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. file — a line of people
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. roll — a list
  19. roll — a cake
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. squash — the sport
  24. file — a tool

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