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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: kid · bay · temple · spring · lie · straw · roll · press

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. lie — to recline
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. spring — the season
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. roll — a cake
  13. kid — to tease
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. press — to push
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. roll — a list
  19. press — a publisher
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. spring — of water
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. press — newspapers
  24. spring — a coil

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