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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: straw · cold · fork · pass · wound · perch · temple · toast

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. cold — not warm
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. perch — the fish
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. wound — an injury
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — an illness
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. toast — bread
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. pass — a permit
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. wound — an injury

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