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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: rock · net · mug · wake · temple · saw · drill · capital

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mug — a cup
  3. mug — a face
  4. drill — a practice
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. drill — the tool
  9. capital — money
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. mug — to rob
  12. rock — music
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. wake — a trail
  15. rock — a stone
  16. net — for catching
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. capital — a city
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — after costs
  21. saw — the tool
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. saw — the tool
  24. drill — army training

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