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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: wind · temple · field · chip · kick · pit

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. pit — a hole
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. field — for sport
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. kick — in football
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chip — for betting
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. pit — in a race
  15. wind — moving air
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. pit — a fruit stone

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