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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. cell — in biology
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. cold — not warm
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. cold — an illness
  20. branch — a division
  21. ball — a great time
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. kick — in football
  24. cell — a phone

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