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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: can · pitch · last · fan · temple · cap · craft · bat

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. cap — of ice
  8. last — finally
  9. bat — the animal
  10. pitch — completely
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a skill
  14. cap — a lid
  15. can — to be able to
  16. last — final
  17. cap — a hat
  18. can — a tin
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. can — a tin
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. last — to go on

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