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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: arm · tear · tube · shower · object · bowl · bat · temple

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. shower — to wash
  6. object — a thing
  7. object — an aim
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. tube — a container
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. tube — the underground
  12. bat — the animal
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. shower — rain
  15. object — to protest
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bat — in an idiom

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