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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. swing — in golf
  4. perch — the fish
  5. lean — thin
  6. net — after costs
  7. fork — in a road
  8. swing — music
  9. net — for catching
  10. swing — to play on
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. tube — a container
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. kick — in football
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. net — in sport
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. lean — to bend
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. tube — in a tire

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