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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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468
Word bank
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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. chest — of your body
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. clip — to cut
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. rock — a stone
  7. clip — a video
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. kid — child
  12. rock — music
  13. chest — of your body
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. perch — the fish
  16. kid — to tease
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. clip — for paper
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. chest — a box
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. rock — to move gently

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