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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: rule · temple · straw · wake · sharp · season · chest · pitcher

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. wake — a trail
  6. season — of the year
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. chest — of your body
  11. season — in sport
  12. sharp — clever
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. rule — a law
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. rule — government
  24. temple — a place of worship

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