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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: arm · band · spell · court · temple · field · lean · mug

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. spell — magic
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a ring
  8. lean — thin
  9. mug — to rob
  10. lean — to bend
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. mug — a face
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. mug — a cup
  19. court — of law
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. field — for sport
  22. court — of a king
  23. field — a subject
  24. court — for sport

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