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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. fine — all right
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. game — a match
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. tear — from crying
  19. fine — high quality
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. tear — from crying
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. tear — to rip
  24. hand — in cards

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