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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: temple · leaves · drill · land · season · present

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. land — ground
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. present — a gift
  6. season — of the year
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. land — a country
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. present — there
  11. drill — army training
  12. land — to come down
  13. drill — a practice
  14. season — in sport
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. present — the time now
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. drill — the tool

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