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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. spring — a coil
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. dip — to sink
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. ground — the earth
  11. spring — of water
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. saw — the tool
  15. ground — a position
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. ground — crushed
  19. spring — the season
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. pop — to visit
  22. snap — to click
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. temple — a place of worship

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