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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mate — a friend
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. mate — to breed
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bore — to tire
  8. mate — a partner
  9. chest — of your body
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. bore — to drill
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. chest — of your body
  15. lean — to bend
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. lean — thin
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. chest — a box
  24. nail — for a hammer

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