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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: wound · temple · foot · pound · trunk · straw · stand · face

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. face — part of the head
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. foot — a measure
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. pound — a weight
  15. wound — an injury
  16. face — to confront
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. face — to point toward
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. temple — side of the head

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