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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. mark — a trace
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — in football
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. squash — the sport
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. wound — an injury
  17. squash — to crush
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. mine — for digging
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. content — happy
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. squash — the vegetable

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