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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: temple · ground · face · board · tear · hand · clip · bat

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. face — to confront
  4. ground — crushed
  5. tear — from crying
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ground — a position
  9. hand — in cards
  10. face — to point toward
  11. ground — the earth
  12. hand — help
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. clip — a video
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. clip — for paper
  17. board — to get on
  18. tear — to rip
  19. board — a committee
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. tear — from crying
  23. face — part of the head
  24. temple — a place of worship

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