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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. perch — the fish
  4. clip — to cut
  5. net — after costs
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — for paper
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. net — for catching
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. drill — a practice
  13. dip — to sink
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. net — in sport
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. drill — army training
  22. drill — the tool
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. bay — a horse colour

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