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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: row · temple · capital · arm · tear · leaves · pit · cell

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. pit — a hole
  3. row — to paddle
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. capital — a city
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cell — a phone
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. tear — from crying
  13. capital — money
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. cell — in biology
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. row — a line
  21. pit — in a race
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. leaves — to go away

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