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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.

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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: march · temple · tear · wave · field · spring · cue · mouse

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. cue — for pool
  4. march — the month
  5. march — music
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. cue — a signal
  14. tear — from crying
  15. field — for sport
  16. spring — a coil
  17. march — the month
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — of water
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. cue — a hint
  23. tear — to rip
  24. mouse — the animal

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