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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: swing · spring · current · bat · temple · degree · hide · chest

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. degree — from a university
  4. current — of water
  5. degree — temperature
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. swing — music
  9. current — electric
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. swing — in golf
  13. current — happening now
  14. chest — of your body
  15. degree — an amount
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — the season
  18. swing — to play on
  19. chest — a box
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. spring — of water
  24. temple — a place of worship

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