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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: bowl · jam · face · rush · clip · hand · temple · shower

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. clip — to cut
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. hand — help
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. clip — a video
  8. rush — hurry
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — to point toward
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — in cards
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. clip — for paper
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bowl — a football final

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