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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: fork · jam · season · net · band · temple · bulb · hand

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. fork — in a road
  3. net — after costs
  4. hand — in cards
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. net — for catching
  10. band — a music group
  11. bulb — for light
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. season — of the year
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. season — in sport
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. net — in sport
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. bulb — for light
  22. band — a ring
  23. fork — to eat with
  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