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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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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: pitcher · temple · cold · object · land · chest · branch · bay

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — not warm
  6. chest — of your body
  7. land — a country
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. branch — a division
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. object — to protest
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. chest — a box
  17. land — to come down
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. object — a thing
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. land — ground
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. object — an aim
  24. cold — an illness

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