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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: scale · mine · spell · patient · temple · rest · cold · dip

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. spell — a short time
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. rest — what's left
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cold — not warm
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. cold — an illness
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. rest — what's left
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. spell — magic
  18. dip — to sink
  19. scale — in music
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. spell — letters
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. rest — a break
  24. scale — size or range

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