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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: mine · cap · land · foot · field · march · temple · chip

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. land — ground
  3. foot — a measure
  4. march — the month
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. field — for sport
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. march — music
  11. mine — for digging
  12. chip — for betting
  13. cap — a lid
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. field — farmland
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. chip — to eat
  18. field — a subject
  19. cap — of ice
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. march — the month
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. cap — a hat
  24. land — a country

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