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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: dip · temple · jam · wound · tear · toast · snap · fall

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. toast — bread
  4. wound — an injury
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. tear — from crying
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. dip — to sink
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wound — an injury
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. fall — the season
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. fall — to drop
  22. snap — to click
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. tear — to rip

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