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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. last — finally
  6. deal — to handle
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. last — final
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. last — to go on
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. calf — a young animal

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