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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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Word bank
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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: land · hide · ground · wave · arm · temple · clip · dip

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. clip — to cut
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. ground — the earth
  6. land — ground
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. land — a country
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. land — to come down
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. clip — a video
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. clip — for paper
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. ground — crushed
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. dip — to sink
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. wave — of the sea

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