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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 ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. track — a path
  5. kid — child
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. bat — the animal
  9. race — the arms race
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — a hole
  13. mine — for digging
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. track — a song
  16. rash — a series
  17. race — humankind
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. rash — hasty
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. pit — in a race
  22. race — a contest
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. track — to keep track

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