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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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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: prune · suit · temple · bear · can · chest · cold · bat

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. suit — clothes
  6. bear — the animal
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bear — the animal
  9. can — a tin
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bat — the animal
  12. prune — to trim
  13. chest — of your body
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. suit — to fit
  17. can — a tin
  18. chest — a box
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. can — to be able to
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. suit — in cards
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bat — for baseball

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