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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 120 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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. last — finally
  3. charge — a price
  4. last — to go on
  5. bat — the animal
  6. snap — to click
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — for sport
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. swing — in golf
  11. charge — electricity
  12. swing — to play on
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. charge — in control
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. last — final
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. lean — to bend
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. field — a subject
  23. swing — music
  24. lean — thin

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