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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. degree — an amount
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. march — music
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. tube — the underground
  14. kid — to tease
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — a country
  17. march — the month
  18. tube — a container
  19. land — ground
  20. lie — to recline
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — from a university
  24. march — the month

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