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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. perch — the fish
  7. kid — child
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. roll — a cake
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. stem — to come from
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. kid — to tease
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — a young animal

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