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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. spell — letters
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. object — to protest
  9. spell — a short time
  10. pop — music
  11. object — an aim
  12. kid — child
  13. dip — to sink
  14. object — a thing
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pop — to visit
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. spell — magic
  22. pop — soda
  23. bat — the animal
  24. straw — dry grass

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