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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: temple · object · stem · saw · kid · cue · lash · arm

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. object — to protest
  5. object — an aim
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. kid — to tease
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. cue — for pool
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. saw — the tool
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. saw — the tool
  22. object — a thing
  23. cue — a signal
  24. kid — child

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