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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. wind — moving air
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. net — in sport
  10. root — of a plant
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. root — of a word
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. root — the cause
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — after costs
  17. wind — moving air
  18. lash — an eyelash

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