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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cue — for pool
  5. wound — an injury
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — of water
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. cue — a signal
  16. branch — a division
  17. rest — what's left
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. rest — what's left
  21. wound — an injury
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. spring — the season
  24. pitcher — a jug

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