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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fall · bat · band · temple · plane · bark · hand · object

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. fall — to drop
  3. object — to protest
  4. hand — in cards
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — the season
  12. hand — help
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. object — an aim
  15. object — a thing
  16. plane — a tool
  17. bark — to shout
  18. band — a music group
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. band — a ring
  22. bat — the animal
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. plane — an aircraft

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