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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. root — of a word
  3. drill — the tool
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. root — of a plant
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. clip — for paper
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — completely
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. drill — army training
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. clip — to cut
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. drill — a practice
  19. ball — a great time
  20. clip — a video
  21. root — the cause
  22. mate — a friend
  23. mate — a partner
  24. mate — to breed

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