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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. fine — high quality
  3. rest — what's left
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. land — a country
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. land — ground
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. land — to come down
  12. fine — all right
  13. present — a gift
  14. kid — to tease
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. date — the fruit
  20. present — the time now
  21. pound — a weight
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. present — there

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