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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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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 · spell · racket · bat · last · race · pass · temple

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  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. racket — for tennis
  2. kid — child
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. last — to go on
  5. spell — letters
  6. pass — a permit
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. spell — a short time
  9. spell — magic
  10. bat — the animal
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. race — a contest
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. last — finally
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. kid — to tease
  20. last — final
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. bat — for baseball
  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