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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.

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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: rest · temple · fine · swing · can · rush · land · bat

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. rest — a break
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. fine — all right
  5. land — a country
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bat — the animal
  9. land — ground
  10. can — to be able to
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. fine — high quality
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rush — hurry
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. swing — music
  18. can — a tin
  19. land — to come down
  20. can — a tin
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. rest — what's left
  23. swing — in golf
  24. rush — to hurry

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