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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: temple · foot · club · toast · chest · hand · tube · chip

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. club — for golf
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. foot — a measure
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. tube — the underground
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. toast — bread
  10. chest — of your body
  11. club — for dancing
  12. hand — in cards
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. chip — for betting
  15. hand — help
  16. club — a group
  17. chip — to eat
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. chest — a box
  22. chest — of your body
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. foot — the bottom

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