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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: bank · rush · bowl · net · wind · shower · last · temple

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. bank — for money
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. bank — of a river
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. bank — for money
  9. last — finally
  10. wind — moving air
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. net — after costs
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. last — final
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. shower — rain
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. last — to go on

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