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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. march — music
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mate — to breed
  9. kid — to tease
  10. mine — for digging
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. march — the month
  13. wound — an injury
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. tube — the underground
  17. rash — a series
  18. march — the month
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. tube — a container
  22. mate — a friend
  23. kid — child
  24. rash — on the skin

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