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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mate — a friend
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mate — a partner
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fork — in a road
  8. mate — to breed
  9. spell — a short time
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. capital — a city
  14. spell — magic
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. kid — to tease
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. spell — letters
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. capital — money

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