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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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: mine · craft · tube · face · field · march · temple · straw

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. field — for sport
  3. face — to confront
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. march — music
  6. craft — a skill
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. march — the month
  9. march — the month
  10. field — farmland
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. face — part of the head
  14. mine — for digging
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. field — a subject
  20. face — to point toward
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. craft — a handicraft

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