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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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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: kick · tear · temple · kid · bat · current · can · staff

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. kid — to tease
  3. current — of water
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. tear — from crying
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kick — in football
  8. current — electric
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. staff — employees
  11. current — happening now
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — the animal
  15. kid — child
  16. can — to be able to
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. can — a tin
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. staff — employees
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. staff — a stick
  24. can — a tin

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