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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: nail · net · season · land · current · patient · temple · ball

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. land — ground
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. season — in sport
  8. current — electric
  9. net — in sport
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. ball — a great time
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. ball — a dance
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. current — of water
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. net — for catching
  21. current — happening now
  22. net — after costs
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. season — of the year

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