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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 120 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: foot · chest · mark · temple · spring · plane

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mark — a trace
  3. chest — of your body
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. spring — of water
  7. chest — a box
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. foot — a measure
  12. plane — a tool
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — a coil
  15. chest — of your body
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. mark — a grade
  18. foot — part of the body

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