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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: tear · mouse · bat · wake · wind · toast · snap · temple

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. toast — bread
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. snap — to click
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. bat — the animal
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. tear — to rip
  12. wake — a trail
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wind — moving air
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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