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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. spring — the season
  6. lie — to recline
  7. tube — a container
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. rule — a law
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. spring — of water
  18. cell — a phone
  19. stem — to come from
  20. cell — in biology
  21. dip — to sink
  22. tube — the underground
  23. rule — government
  24. spring — a coil

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