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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. fork — in a road
  3. rule — government
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — a box
  6. kid — child
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. rule — a law
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. chest — of your body
  12. branch — a division
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. kick — in football
  15. kid — to tease
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. temple — side of the head

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