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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: clip · fan · ball · land · temple · rush

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. rush — hurry
  3. ball — a dance
  4. land — a country
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. clip — for paper
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. clip — to cut
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — ground
  17. clip — a video
  18. rush — a thrill

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