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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. sharp — clever
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. last — to go on
  18. land — ground
  19. land — to come down
  20. last — finally
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. last — final
  23. land — a country
  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