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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: pound · kid · hand · temple · mouse · march · content · toast

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. march — music
  4. kid — to tease
  5. hand — help
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. march — the month
  8. content — the amount
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. kid — child
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. hand — in cards
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. toast — bread
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. content — happy
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. march — the month
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. mouse — the animal

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