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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: temple · stem · chest · lash · swing · rule

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. stem — to come from
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rule — a law
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. swing — to play on
  8. chest — of your body
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. swing — music
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. swing — in golf
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. rule — government
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. chest — a box

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