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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.

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: dip · temple · field · hide · mug · bore · chest · land

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. bore — to tire
  5. dip — to sink
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. land — ground
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. chest — a box
  10. chest — of your body
  11. field — a subject
  12. chest — of your body
  13. land — a country
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. mug — to rob
  16. mug — a cup
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. field — farmland
  20. bore — to drill
  21. mug — a face
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. land — to come down

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