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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: mark · deal · bay · sharp · shower · race · temple · band

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. shower — rain
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. shower — to wash
  7. race — the arms race
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. sharp — clever
  12. race — humankind
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. band — a music group
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. band — a ring
  20. deal — to handle
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. race — a contest
  23. mark — a trace
  24. band — a rubber band

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