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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. wound — an injury
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. wound — an injury
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. bass — low music
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. cold — an illness
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bass — the fish
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. cold — not warm

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