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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.

Make a worksheet

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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. branch — a division
  12. net — for catching
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — a subject
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. rush — hurry
  22. field — for sport
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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