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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 · key · dip · row · chest · snap · wind · wake

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. key — for a lock
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. wake — a trail
  6. dip — to sink
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. row — a line
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. wind — moving air
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. wind — moving air
  14. key — in music
  15. chest — of your body
  16. key — the most important part
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. snap — to click
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. chest — a box
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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