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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — a phone
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. face — to confront
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. sharp — clever
  12. rock — a stone
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. drill — a practice
  15. prune — to trim
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. face — to point toward
  21. drill — the tool
  22. cell — in biology
  23. drill — army training
  24. face — part of the head

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