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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: fan · mug · cell · face · rest · temple · pop · rule

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. mug — a face
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. pop — music
  6. mug — to rob
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. mug — a cup
  9. face — to confront
  10. cell — in biology
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. pop — to visit
  13. face — to point toward
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. cell — a phone
  16. rule — a law
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. rest — what's left
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rule — government
  22. face — part of the head
  23. pop — soda
  24. cell — in a prison

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