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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: arm · hide · race · net · kid · temple · dip · game

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. race — humankind
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. game — a match
  10. race — a contest
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. net — after costs
  15. kid — to tease
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. game — wild animals
  19. net — for catching
  20. race — the arms race
  21. net — in sport
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. dip — to sink
  24. hide — to keep secret

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