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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. pop — to visit
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. kid — child
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. content — happy
  10. clip — for paper
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. pop — soda
  13. pop — music
  14. clip — a video
  15. content — the amount
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. kid — to tease
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. clip — to cut
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. lie — to recline

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