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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. net — in sport
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. pound — a weight
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. net — for catching
  10. mate — to breed
  11. fine — high quality
  12. band — a music group
  13. fine — all right
  14. bank — for money
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. mate — a partner
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. band — a ring
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. bank — of a river
  22. net — after costs
  23. mate — a friend
  24. bank — for money

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