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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.

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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: patient · land · chest · temple · season · spell · key · branch

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — letters
  3. season — in sport
  4. key — in music
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. chest — a box
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. chest — of your body
  12. branch — a division
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. chest — of your body
  16. land — to come down
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — the most important part
  19. land — a country
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. spell — a short time
  22. season — of the year
  23. land — ground
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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