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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: cold · fork · lash · safe · fan · mine · temple · rule

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. rule — government
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. rule — a law
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. fork — in a road
  12. cold — not warm
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. cold — an illness
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. mine — for digging
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. safe — out of danger

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