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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 120 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: craft · racket · hand · arm · wax · temple · cell · tube

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. hand — help
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. cell — a phone
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. craft — a skill
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. hand — in cards
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. tube — the underground
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wax — to grow
  23. tube — a container
  24. craft — boats

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