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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: rest · temple · track · spring · kick · toast · rush · content

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. content — happy
  3. track — to keep track
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. spring — of water
  6. toast — bread
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. content — the amount
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rest — a break
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rest — what's left
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. kick — in football
  21. track — a song
  22. track — a path
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. kick — with a leg

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