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

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. bat — the animal
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. degree — temperature
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. swing — in golf
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. swing — music
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. vault — a safe
  19. degree — an amount
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. degree — from a university

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