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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: pound · root · temple · tear · bowl · date · season · game

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. root — the cause
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. game — wild animals
  6. root — of a word
  7. tear — from crying
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. season — in sport
  10. pound — a weight
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. root — of a plant
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. tear — from crying
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. game — a match
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. temple — side of the head

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