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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: present · temple · pitcher · nail · kid · sharp · leaves · cold

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. present — the time now
  3. kid — to tease
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. present — a gift
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. cold — an illness
  13. kid — child
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. cold — not warm
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. present — there
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — exactly

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