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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.

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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: object · cold · temple · bowl · safe · fork · land · club

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. land — to come down
  3. object — an aim
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. club — a group
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. land — ground
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. club — for dancing
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. club — for golf
  16. land — a country
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — an illness
  24. object — a thing

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