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

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. season — in sport
  4. pop — to visit
  5. wound — an injury
  6. fine — high quality
  7. key — for a lock
  8. fine — all right
  9. band — a ring
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — in music
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. pop — soda
  18. band — a music group
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. season — of the year
  21. wound — an injury
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. pop — music
  24. fan — to cool the air

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