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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
468
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: march · land · pitcher · temple · spring · mate · foot · tear

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. march — the month
  4. mate — to breed
  5. land — ground
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. mate — a friend
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. spring — of water
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. tear — from crying
  13. march — music
  14. spring — the season
  15. march — the month
  16. foot — a measure
  17. spring — a coil
  18. mate — a partner
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. land — to come down
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. foot — the bottom

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