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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. face — to confront
  3. face — part of the head
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. spell — magic
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. degree — an amount
  10. mark — a trace
  11. game — a match
  12. bank — for money
  13. degree — from a university
  14. face — to point toward
  15. spell — letters
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. mark — a grade
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. degree — temperature
  24. spell — a short time

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