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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: game · firm · field · pass · temple · land · kid · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. capital — money
  4. pass — a permit
  5. game — wild animals
  6. land — ground
  7. field — farmland
  8. firm — steady
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. kid — child
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. capital — a city
  13. field — for sport
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. field — a subject
  17. game — a match
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. land — to come down
  20. kid — to tease
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. firm — a company
  23. land — a country
  24. firm — decided

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