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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: wave · tube · hand · pop · temple · cold · tear · mouse

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. pop — soda
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. hand — in cards
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. pop — music
  9. tear — from crying
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. cold — not warm
  13. hand — help
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. tube — the underground
  17. cold — an illness
  18. tear — to rip
  19. pop — to visit
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. tear — from crying
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. tube — a container
  24. temple — a place of worship

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