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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
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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: cabinet · bark · charge · tear · nail · spring · field · temple

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — for sport
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. charge — in control
  8. charge — electricity
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tear — from crying
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. spring — the season
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. spring — of water
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bark — to shout
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. spring — a coil
  22. charge — a price
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. field — a subject

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