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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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Word bank
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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: saw · pit · bat · fine · object · temple

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. object — to protest
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. saw — the tool
  10. object — a thing
  11. pit — a hole
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. pit — in a race
  15. fine — all right
  16. object — an aim
  17. bat — the animal
  18. saw — past of 'see'

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