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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.

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: content · last · present · mine · row · nail · mug · temple

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. last — to go on
  4. mug — to rob
  5. mug — a cup
  6. last — final
  7. present — a gift
  8. content — happy
  9. mug — a face
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. last — finally
  14. mine — for digging
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a line
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. present — the time now
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. present — there
  24. nail — for a hammer

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