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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: plane · tube · tear · kid · bowl · branch · lie · temple

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. plane — a tool
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. kid — child
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. tear — from crying
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. branch — a division
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. tube — the underground
  18. lie — to recline
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. tear — to rip

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