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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: spring · temple · face · ball · tube · last · leaves · mouse

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. tube — the underground
  3. ball — a great time
  4. last — final
  5. ball — a dance
  6. spring — of water
  7. face — part of the head
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. spring — the season
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. face — to confront
  14. last — to go on
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. tube — a container
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. spring — a coil
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. last — finally
  24. temple — a place of worship

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