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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: press · chip · branch · content · mine · current · temple · kid

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. kid — to tease
  3. press — to push
  4. kid — child
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. content — happy
  7. mine — for digging
  8. current — of water
  9. chip — to eat
  10. press — newspapers
  11. branch — a division
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. chip — for betting
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. press — a publisher
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. current — happening now
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. current — electric

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