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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wound — an injury
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. mug — a face
  8. mug — to rob
  9. object — a thing
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. scale — in music
  13. mine — for digging
  14. dip — to sink
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. object — to protest
  19. mug — a cup
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. object — an aim

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