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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: lean · roll · ground · squash · temple · kick · swing · snap

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. ground — crushed
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. lean — thin
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. roll — a list
  14. snap — to click
  15. kick — in football
  16. roll — a cake
  17. squash — the sport
  18. lean — to bend
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. ground — the earth
  23. squash — to crush
  24. ground — a position

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