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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. drill — the tool
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. kid — to tease
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bank — for money
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. drill — army training
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. cold — an illness
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — size or range
  17. kid — child
  18. bank — for money
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. cold — not warm
  21. perch — the fish
  22. date — the fruit
  23. scale — in music
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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