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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. wound — an injury
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. saw — the tool
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. wound — an injury
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fork — in a road
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. prune — to trim
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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