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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: temple · patient · season · degree · lean · bound · field · craft

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. craft — a skill
  3. bound — obliged
  4. craft — boats
  5. lean — to bend
  6. degree — an amount
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. field — for sport
  10. bound — tied together
  11. field — a subject
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. season — of the year
  15. lean — thin
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bound — certain
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. field — farmland
  24. season — in sport

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