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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.

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: lean · band · temple · spring · chest · capital · lash · field

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. field — for sport
  3. chest — of your body
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. lean — thin
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. band — a music group
  8. chest — of your body
  9. field — farmland
  10. band — a ring
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. chest — a box
  15. spring — the season
  16. lean — to bend
  17. field — a subject
  18. capital — money
  19. spring — of water
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. capital — a city
  24. lash — to lash out

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