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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. hand — help
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. present — a gift
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. bulb — for light
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. present — there
  16. present — the time now
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. mine — for digging
  23. hand — in cards
  24. mine — an explosive

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