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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: sharp · bound · wind · temple · cue · lash · kid · wave

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. kid — child
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bound — obliged
  6. cue — for pool
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cue — a hint
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. cue — a signal
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. sharp — clever
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bound — certain
  24. kid — to tease

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