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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: last · band · cell · cap · face · temple · scale · snap

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. last — finally
  4. face — part of the head
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. face — to confront
  7. band — a music group
  8. cap — of ice
  9. scale — in music
  10. snap — to click
  11. last — final
  12. cap — a hat
  13. scale — size or range
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. last — to go on
  17. cap — a lid
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. face — to point toward
  22. cell — in biology
  23. band — a ring
  24. temple — a place of worship

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