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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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468
Word bank
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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. spell — letters
  3. staff — a stick
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. tear — to rip
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. staff — employees
  8. fork — in a road
  9. race — humankind
  10. tear — from crying
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — a tool
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. race — the arms race
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. spell — a short time
  18. staff — employees
  19. spell — magic
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. tear — from crying
  24. race — a contest

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