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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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Word bank
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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: rock · mouse · ground · scale · race · chair · last · temple

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. race — a contest
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. last — final
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. race — the arms race
  9. chair — a leader
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. race — humankind
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. ground — crushed
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. rock — music
  20. rock — a stone
  21. scale — size or range
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. scale — in 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