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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bat · spell · bark · foot · spring · prune · chip · temple

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. bark — to shout
  6. spell — letters
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. spell — magic
  9. bat — the animal
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. spring — the season
  12. spell — a short time
  13. prune — to trim
  14. foot — a measure
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. chip — for betting
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — a coil
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. chip — to eat

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