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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
468
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: temple · branch · field · tear · mate · pitcher · press · court

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. press — a publisher
  3. mate — a partner
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. branch — a division
  7. press — to push
  8. field — a subject
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. field — farmland
  11. mate — a friend
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. tear — from crying
  14. field — for sport
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. mate — to breed
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. press — newspapers
  19. court — of a king
  20. tear — to rip
  21. court — of law
  22. tear — from crying
  23. court — for sport
  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