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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.

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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 · prune · row · rush · tear · cell · pass · hide

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pass — a permit
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. row — to paddle
  10. tear — to rip
  11. prune — to trim
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. row — a line
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. prune — to trim
  22. cell — a phone
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. rush — hurry

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