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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: rule · cold · stick · temple · mine · bear

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. rule — a law
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — for digging
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. bear — the animal
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. bear — the animal
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. rule — government
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. rule — to rule out

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