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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bank — for money
  4. file — a tool
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bank — for money
  7. file — a document
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bank — of a river
  10. bulb — for light
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. ground — the earth
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. cap — a lid
  16. bulb — for light
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. file — a line of people
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. ground — crushed
  21. cap — a hat
  22. kid — child
  23. ground — a position
  24. cap — of ice

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