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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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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: temple · perch · object · ground · ball · chest · kick · patient

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. object — an aim
  3. ground — a position
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. ground — the earth
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. object — a thing
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ball — a dance
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. ground — crushed
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. perch — the fish
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. object — to protest
  24. kick — in football

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