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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 120 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: board · temple · chair · mark · cell · tear · stick · plane

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. plane — a tool
  3. cell — a phone
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. tear — to rip
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. tear — from crying
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. board — a committee
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. mark — a trace
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. chair — a leader
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mark — a grade
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. board — to get on
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. cell — in biology

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