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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
468
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: temple · perch · rash · wound · mug · wax · present · spring

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. wax — to grow
  3. present — the time now
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. wound — an injury
  6. present — a gift
  7. mug — a face
  8. rash — hasty
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. spring — a coil
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. mug — a cup
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. perch — the fish
  18. spring — the season
  19. wound — an injury
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. spring — of water
  22. rash — a series
  23. mug — to rob
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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