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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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. court — for sport
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. court — of a king
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — for paper
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. court — of law
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. toast — bread
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. clip — to cut
  17. cold — not warm
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rush — hurry
  21. mine — for digging
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. cold — an illness

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