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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: snap · bat · sharp · trunk · stand · temple · kid · rash

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — a series
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. sharp — clever
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. kid — child
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. snap — to click
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. stand — to bear
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — to tease
  24. bat — the animal

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