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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fan · hand · bark · temple · stock · kid · mouse · pit

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. kid — child
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — to shout
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. hand — help
  12. stock — goods
  13. kid — to tease
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — in cards
  16. pit — in a race
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. stock — shares
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. pit — a hole
  24. fan — a supporter

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