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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: pound · capital · bore · sharp · kick · kid · temple · arm

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. capital — money
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. kid — child
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. bore — to tire
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. kick — in football
  12. capital — a city
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. pound — a weight
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bore — to drill
  23. sharp — clever
  24. kid — to tease

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