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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
468
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: bark · jam · wound · deal · band · land · temple · field

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. field — a subject
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. deal — to handle
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. wound — an injury
  11. land — to come down
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. field — for sport
  14. band — a music group
  15. field — farmland
  16. land — ground
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. land — a country
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. band — a ring
  24. jam — in traffic

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