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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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. season — in sport
  8. rest — a break
  9. pound — a weight
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. fall — to drop
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. mine — for digging
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — what's left
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. fall — the season
  23. hand — in cards
  24. pound — for dogs

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