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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. can — to be able to
  5. land — to come down
  6. hand — in cards
  7. land — ground
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. capital — a city
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. hand — help
  13. pound — a weight
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. wake — a trail
  21. land — a country
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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