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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. field — for sport
  7. kid — to tease
  8. field — farmland
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. pass — a permit
  11. root — the cause
  12. root — of a word
  13. kid — child
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. march — music
  17. root — of a plant
  18. march — the month
  19. chip — for betting
  20. field — a subject
  21. chip — to eat
  22. march — the month
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. wound — an injury

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