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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. fall — to drop
  5. pitch — completely
  6. saw — the tool
  7. fall — the season
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bear — the animal
  10. march — music
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. wound — an injury
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. bear — the animal
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — a trail
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. march — the month
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. march — the month
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. temple — a place of worship

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