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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. spell — a short time
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. spell — letters
  7. ball — a great time
  8. swing — music
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. spell — magic
  12. present — there
  13. present — the time now
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. bat — the animal
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. swing — to play on
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. craft — a skill
  20. swing — in golf
  21. craft — boats
  22. ball — a dance
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. present — a gift

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