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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. pit — in a race
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. drill — the tool
  6. last — finally
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pit — a hole
  11. wind — moving air
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. bound — tied together
  14. kick — in football
  15. bound — obliged
  16. last — to go on
  17. drill — army training
  18. bound — certain
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. last — final
  21. drill — a practice
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. straw — a straw man

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