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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. hand — help
  3. wake — a trail
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. bound — certain
  8. press — newspapers
  9. mine — for digging
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. press — a publisher
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. hand — in cards
  14. foot — a measure
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — obliged
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wind — moving air
  22. press — to push
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. wind — moving air

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