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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. club — for golf
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. cold — not warm
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. lean — thin
  8. kick — in football
  9. club — a group
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. prune — to trim
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. lean — to bend
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. club — for dancing
  24. prune — to trim

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