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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: mate · rest · wind · race · hide · land · temple · foot

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rest — a break
  4. wind — moving air
  5. race — the arms race
  6. mate — to breed
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — ground
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. rest — what's left
  11. race — a contest
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. rest — what's left
  14. race — humankind
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. land — a country
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. mate — a partner
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. mate — a friend
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. hide — animal skin

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