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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · mate · wake · mine · season · drill · temple · kid

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. kid — to tease
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. drill — the tool
  8. field — farmland
  9. mate — a friend
  10. season — in sport
  11. drill — army training
  12. field — for sport
  13. drill — a practice
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. field — a subject
  19. mate — a partner
  20. mate — to breed
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — to add flavour

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