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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. ground — the earth
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — the underground
  6. ground — crushed
  7. last — final
  8. last — finally
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. chest — of your body
  12. tube — a container
  13. lie — to recline
  14. last — to go on
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — a box
  17. bear — the animal
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. capital — a city
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. capital — money
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. ground — a position

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