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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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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: wound · kid · bark · can · stand · rock · temple · march

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. march — the month
  5. can — to be able to
  6. rock — a stone
  7. kid — child
  8. march — the month
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. rock — music
  12. can — a tin
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. wound — an injury
  15. kid — to tease
  16. march — music
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bark — to shout
  20. wound — an injury
  21. stand — to bear
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. temple — side of the head

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