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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: spell · mine · bark · leaves · temple · kid · fork · bowl

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. spell — letters
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. kid — child
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. mine — for digging
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. bark — to shout
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. spell — a short time
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. kid — to tease

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