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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
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: track · season · temple · fork · sharp · cold · wax · root

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. root — of a plant
  4. season — of the year
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. season — in sport
  11. wax — to grow
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. root — the cause
  14. sharp — clever
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. track — a song
  19. root — of a word
  20. track — to keep track
  21. track — a path
  22. fork — in a road
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — not warm

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