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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: trunk · temple · root · season · hand · bay · capital · board

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. hand — help
  3. season — of the year
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. hand — in cards
  8. board — to get on
  9. season — in sport
  10. root — of a word
  11. capital — a city
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. root — of a plant
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. board — a committee
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. root — the cause
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. capital — money

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