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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: rock · shower · coach · stand · temple · pop · field · mate

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. mate — a friend
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. rock — a stone
  8. field — for sport
  9. pop — to visit
  10. shower — to wash
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. pop — music
  13. stand — to bear
  14. field — farmland
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. mate — a partner
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. mate — to breed
  19. field — a subject
  20. pop — soda
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. rock — music
  23. shower — rain
  24. temple — a place of worship

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