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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: temple · branch · straw · cabinet · kid · present · march · stand

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. present — there
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. branch — a division
  6. kid — to tease
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. stand — to bear
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. march — music
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. present — a gift
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. march — the month
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. march — the month
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. present — the time now

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