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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bear — the animal
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. cold — not warm
  8. clip — a video
  9. fall — to drop
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. stand — to bear
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. pitch — completely
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. clip — for paper
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. clip — to cut
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. fall — the season
  21. bear — the animal
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. cold — an illness
  24. fall — to drop

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