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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. rush — hurry
  7. cold — not warm
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. cold — an illness
  15. tear — to rip
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. safe — out of danger

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