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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: jam · wake · kid · temple · roll · wind · coach · trunk

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wind — moving air
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. wake — a trail
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. roll — a cake
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. roll — a list
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. kid — child
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wind — moving air
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. roll — on a roll

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