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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: kid · date · snap · lean · spring · temple · roll · cell

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. lean — to bend
  3. roll — a cake
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. cell — a phone
  7. spring — of water
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. snap — to click
  11. date — the fruit
  12. kid — child
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. spring — a coil
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. kid — to tease
  21. lean — thin
  22. roll — a list
  23. spring — the season
  24. date — on the calendar

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