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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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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: chest · pitcher · mate · spell · stock · firm · temple · hand

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  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. temple — a place of worship
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — a short time
  4. mate — a partner
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. firm — steady
  7. chest — a box
  8. mate — a friend
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. stock — goods
  11. chest — of your body
  12. hand — in cards
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. firm — a company
  15. stock — shares
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — help
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. chest — of your body
  21. firm — decided
  22. spell — letters
  23. mate — to breed
  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