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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.

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: cap · temple · patient · dip · wound · land

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. land — to come down
  3. cap — a lid
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. land — ground
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. cap — of ice
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. dip — to sink
  11. cap — a hat
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. land — a country
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. wound — an injury

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