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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: pound · lash · cell · mark · temple · wave · bound · dip

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mark — a grade
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. bound — certain
  5. bound — obliged
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. cell — a phone
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. dip — to sink
  16. mark — a trace
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — a weight
  20. cell — in biology
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. bound — tied together

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