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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mouse · cold · temple · rule · wax · ruler

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. rule — a law
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. rule — government
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. wax — to grow
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. temple — side of the head

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