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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. pound — a weight
  4. present — the time now
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. face — to point toward
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. wax — to grow
  9. face — part of the head
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. face — to confront
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. land — a country
  14. mug — a cup
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — a safe
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. present — there
  19. land — to come down
  20. mug — to rob
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. present — a gift
  24. mug — a face

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