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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: pitcher · temple · bear · march · file · club · chest · tube

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. file — a line of people
  5. march — music
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. club — for dancing
  8. club — a group
  9. tube — the underground
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. bear — the animal
  12. file — a tool
  13. march — the month
  14. tube — a container
  15. bear — the animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. file — a document
  21. march — the month
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — of your body
  24. club — for golf

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