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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. hand — help
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. season — of the year
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. hand — in cards
  17. kick — in football
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. wax — to grow
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. season — in sport
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. kick — with a leg

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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