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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: field · temple · fall · capital · kid · rush · charge · band

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. charge — in control
  3. charge — a price
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. field — a subject
  10. rush — hurry
  11. field — farmland
  12. capital — money
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. kid — to tease
  18. field — for sport
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. charge — electricity
  24. kid — child

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