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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: mug · temple · race · field · face · scale · wake · stick

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. field — a subject
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. scale — in music
  5. mug — to rob
  6. face — to confront
  7. race — the arms race
  8. face — to point toward
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. field — for sport
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. field — farmland
  13. scale — size or range
  14. race — humankind
  15. mug — a cup
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. mug — a face
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. race — a contest
  21. face — part of the head
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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