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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: chip · march · cap · field · bound · temple · shower · sharp

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. shower — rain
  5. sharp — clever
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. cap — a lid
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. cap — of ice
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. field — farmland
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. field — for sport
  14. bound — certain
  15. shower — to wash
  16. field — a subject
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. march — the month
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — for betting
  21. cap — a hat
  22. bound — obliged
  23. sharp — exactly
  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