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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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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: wind · stand · lie · bound · temple · drill · branch · bank

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bank — of a river
  5. branch — a division
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bank — for money
  8. drill — army training
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bank — for money
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bound — certain
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — a practice
  20. bound — obliged
  21. lie — to recline
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. branch — of a tree

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