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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. scale — in music
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — to confront
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a tool
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. face — part of the head
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. roll — a list
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. wound — an injury
  21. file — a document
  22. scale — size or range
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. temple — a place of worship

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