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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. last — final
  4. track — to keep track
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. track — a song
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. game — wild animals
  18. mine — for digging
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — finally
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. track — a path
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. wake — a trail

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