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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: arm · bark · temple · leaves · roll · mine · last · bay

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. last — to go on
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bark — to shout
  10. last — final
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. last — finally
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — a cake
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. mine — belonging to me

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