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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 120 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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pass — a permit
  5. season — of the year
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. tear — from crying
  10. season — in sport
  11. tear — from crying
  12. kid — to tease
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. tear — to rip
  21. kid — child
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. fork — in a road

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