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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 · pitch · bound · temple · wave · foot · bat · date

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bound — tied together
  7. foot — a measure
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. bound — certain
  14. bound — obliged
  15. date — the fruit
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. bat — the animal
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. pitch — completely
  24. foot — the bottom

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