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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. land — ground
  3. march — the month
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. hand — in cards
  6. fall — to drop
  7. cue — for pool
  8. hand — help
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. land — to come down
  11. march — the month
  12. fall — the season
  13. cue — a hint
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wound — an injury
  16. fall — to drop
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. wound — an injury
  19. cue — a signal
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. land — a country
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. march — music

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