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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. clip — a video
  5. chest — a box
  6. present — there
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. present — the time now
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. chest — of your body
  13. clip — for paper
  14. present — a gift
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bulb — for light
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. kick — in football
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. clip — to cut
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. kick — a thrill

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