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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: bay · mate · snap · temple · kid · bound · ground · ruler

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. kid — to tease
  3. snap — to click
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. bound — certain
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — crushed
  11. mate — a partner
  12. bound — tied together
  13. ground — a position
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. mate — to breed
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. mate — a friend
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. kid — child
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. bound — obliged
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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