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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: temple · race · date · rest · cell · sharp · lean · row

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  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. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. cell — a phone
  4. row — to paddle
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. lean — to bend
  10. row — a line
  11. rest — what's left
  12. sharp — clever
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rest — a break
  15. rest — what's left
  16. race — humankind
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. lean — thin
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. date — the fruit
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. race — a contest
  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