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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: temple · spring · hide · straw · last · rule · tube · bound

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. rule — a law
  5. bound — certain
  6. last — final
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bound — obliged
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. tube — the underground
  12. spring — of water
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. rule — government
  16. last — finally
  17. spring — a coil
  18. tube — a container
  19. bound — tied together
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. spring — the season
  24. hide — animal skin

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