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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: band · straw · toast · can · date · temple · ground · chest

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. ground — the earth
  3. chest — of your body
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. chest — of your body
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. band — a ring
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. toast — bread
  14. ground — a position
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. ground — crushed
  17. band — a music group
  18. can — to be able to
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. can — a tin
  21. date — the fruit
  22. can — a tin
  23. chest — a box
  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