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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: temple · calf · court · craft · spring · wound · field · toast

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. field — a subject
  3. wound — an injury
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. field — for sport
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. spring — a coil
  12. craft — a skill
  13. spring — the season
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. wound — an injury
  16. court — of a king
  17. craft — boats
  18. spring — of water
  19. court — for sport
  20. field — farmland
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. court — of law

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