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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. pound — a weight
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. wake — a trail
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rush — hurry
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. court — of a king
  16. court — of law
  17. court — for sport
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. kid — child
  22. tear — from crying
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. kid — to tease

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