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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 · fork · pit · temple · rest · patient · mug · fan

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. mug — to rob
  3. mug — a face
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. pit — in a race
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. pit — a hole
  13. rest — what's left
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. mug — a cup
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rest — what's left
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. rest — a break
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. temple — a place of worship

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