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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. club — for golf
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. wind — moving air
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. kick — in football
  9. charge — electricity
  10. tear — to rip
  11. last — to go on
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. last — final
  14. tear — from crying
  15. band — a ring
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. club — a group
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. band — a music group
  20. charge — in control
  21. charge — a price
  22. club — for dancing
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. wind — moving air

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