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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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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: kid · bound · fall · bore · prune · field · mug · temple

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bound — certain
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. bound — tied together
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. bore — to tire
  9. kid — child
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mug — a cup
  12. prune — to trim
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bound — obliged
  16. field — for sport
  17. bore — to drill
  18. prune — to trim
  19. field — farmland
  20. fall — to drop
  21. field — a subject
  22. mug — to rob
  23. fall — the season
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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