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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: fall · hand · temple · tear · deal · lie · key · club

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. key — for a lock
  4. tear — to rip
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. club — a group
  7. hand — in cards
  8. club — for golf
  9. key — in music
  10. key — the most important part
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. tear — from crying
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. fall — to drop
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. tear — from crying
  18. fall — the season
  19. deal — to handle
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. fall — to drop
  23. club — for dancing
  24. hand — part of the body

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