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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. club — a group
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. ball — a great time
  6. swing — in golf
  7. clip — to cut
  8. club — for golf
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. clip — for paper
  11. spell — magic
  12. ball — a dance
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. spell — letters
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. spell — a short time
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. swing — to play on
  20. swing — music
  21. club — for dancing
  22. clip — a video
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — a young animal

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