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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. drill — army training
  5. rule — a law
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. drill — a practice
  9. tear — from crying
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. rule — government
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. drill — the tool
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pop — soda
  17. tear — to rip
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. pop — to visit
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pop — music

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