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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: bowl · kid · mate · lean · temple · race

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to bend
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. kid — to tease
  6. race — humankind
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. mate — a partner
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. race — the arms race
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. race — a contest
  16. mate — to breed
  17. kid — child
  18. mate — a friend

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