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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: club · temple · chip · tear · saw · pound

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — a weight
  5. chip — for betting
  6. club — for dancing
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. tear — to rip
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. club — a group
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. tear — from crying
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. chip — to eat
  15. tear — from crying
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. club — for golf

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