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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. ground — a position
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. spell — magic
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. fall — to drop
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. spell — a short time
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. pit — in a race
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — a hole
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. ground — the earth
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. ground — crushed
  24. perch — the fish

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