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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 120 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — a series
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. game — a match
  7. kick — in football
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. pass — a permit
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. game — wild animals
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — money
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — letters
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. pass — to spend time

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