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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. kid — child
  3. spring — a coil
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. drill — the tool
  7. mark — a grade
  8. spring — of water
  9. drill — a practice
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. season — of the year
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. drill — army training
  16. spring — the season
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. season — in sport
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. march — music
  21. march — the month
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. march — the month
  24. kick — in football

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