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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.

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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: kid · pound · arm · fork · wax · temple · charge · season

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — to tease
  8. charge — a price
  9. season — in sport
  10. kid — child
  11. charge — electricity
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. wax — to grow
  14. fork — in a road
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. season — of the year
  24. charge — in control

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