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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 120 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: season · temple · bound · prune · track · tube · face · wake

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. track — to keep track
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. prune — to trim
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. track — a song
  10. bound — certain
  11. bound — tied together
  12. tube — the underground
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. track — a path
  16. wake — a trail
  17. face — to confront
  18. tube — a container
  19. prune — to trim
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. bound — obliged
  24. face — to point toward

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