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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.

Make a worksheet

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: temple · branch · scale · snap · field · cap · mine · last

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. last — finally
  3. cap — of ice
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. scale — size or range
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. last — to go on
  9. snap — to click
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. scale — in music
  15. field — for sport
  16. branch — a division
  17. last — final
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. mine — for digging
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — a subject
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. cap — a hat
  24. mine — an explosive

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