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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: temple · shower · object · clip · kid · mouse · root · ball

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. root — of a plant
  5. shower — to wash
  6. root — the cause
  7. clip — a video
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. shower — rain
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. ball — a great time
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — child
  15. clip — for paper
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. root — of a word
  18. clip — to cut
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. object — to protest
  21. object — an aim
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. ball — a dance

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