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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: stand · season · temple · land · bat · capital · march · fan

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. land — to come down
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. capital — money
  5. march — music
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. march — the month
  11. capital — a city
  12. stand — to bear
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. land — ground
  20. season — in sport
  21. land — a country
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bat — the animal

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