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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: tear · wind · suit · face · kick · temple · straw · hand

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. suit — in cards
  3. suit — clothes
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — help
  6. wind — moving air
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. face — part of the head
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. wind — moving air
  12. tear — to rip
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. tear — from crying
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. suit — to fit
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. tear — from crying
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. face — to point toward
  24. face — to confront

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