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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: fine · file · temple · cold · perch · capital · mate · bowl

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. mate — to breed
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. perch — the fish
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cold — not warm
  10. fine — high quality
  11. file — a tool
  12. file — a document
  13. cold — an illness
  14. mate — a friend
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. capital — money
  17. file — a line of people
  18. fine — all right
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. capital — a city
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. mate — a partner

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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