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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.

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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: field · tear · land · temple · spell · lean · straw · track

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. spell — a short time
  5. track — to keep track
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. tear — from crying
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. land — to come down
  10. land — ground
  11. field — for sport
  12. track — a path
  13. lean — thin
  14. spell — magic
  15. tear — from crying
  16. field — a subject
  17. field — farmland
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. spell — letters
  20. lean — to bend
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. tear — to rip
  23. track — a song
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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