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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. content — the amount
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. cap — a lid
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cap — a hat
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. bear — the animal
  15. land — ground
  16. cap — of ice
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. content — happy
  19. bear — the animal
  20. land — to come down
  21. plane — a tool
  22. hand — help
  23. land — a country
  24. dip — to sink

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