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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: spring · march · fork · present · temple · rule

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. present — there
  3. spring — the season
  4. present — a gift
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. spring — a coil
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. spring — of water
  14. march — the month
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. rule — government
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. present — the time now

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