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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: ground · swing · row · tear · pit · board · temple · game

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. pit — in a race
  3. game — wild animals
  4. swing — to play on
  5. row — to paddle
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. tear — to rip
  9. swing — in golf
  10. tear — from crying
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. tear — from crying
  13. ground — the earth
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — to get on
  16. ground — a position
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. pit — a hole
  20. row — a line
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. swing — music
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. ground — crushed

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