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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.

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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: dip · tear · charge · content · trunk · temple · cold · lie

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. content — happy
  4. cold — an illness
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. charge — in control
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. content — the amount
  11. charge — electricity
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. charge — a price
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. dip — to sink
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cold — not warm
  20. tear — from crying
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. lie — to recline
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. tear — to rip

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