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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: wind · fall · temple · tube · bat · court · can · lash

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. can — to be able to
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. fall — the season
  7. fall — to drop
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. court — of a king
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tube — a container
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. court — of law
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. can — a tin
  20. court — for sport
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. can — a tin
  23. bat — the animal
  24. fall — to drop

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