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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: patient · capital · ground · toast · cue · perch · temple · last

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cue — a hint
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. capital — money
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. ground — the earth
  7. last — final
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. last — finally
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. cue — for pool
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. cue — a signal
  17. capital — a city
  18. last — to go on
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. toast — bread
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — crushed
  24. perch — the fish

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