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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 124 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. degree — temperature
  6. staff — employees
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. track — a path
  11. degree — from a university
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. staff — employees
  14. track — to keep track
  15. track — a song
  16. rule — government
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. rule — a law
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. degree — an amount
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. staff — a stick
  24. bat — the 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