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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 120 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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. clip — to cut
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. pop — to visit
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — a stick
  7. tube — the underground
  8. bulb — for light
  9. pop — soda
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. clip — a video
  12. staff — employees
  13. wind — moving air
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. clip — for paper
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. tube — a container
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bulb — for light
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. pop — 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