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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: march · current · cap · squash · temple · lie · stick · bank

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — a hat
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cap — of ice
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. squash — the sport
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. march — the month
  11. bank — of a river
  12. current — electric
  13. march — the month
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bank — for money
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. march — music
  19. current — of water
  20. lie — to recline
  21. current — happening now
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. bank — for money
  24. lie — an untruth

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