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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: leaves · temple · shower · field · band · chair

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. shower — rain
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. field — a subject
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. band — a music group
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. band — a ring
  16. chair — a leader
  17. shower — to wash
  18. chair — to sit on

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