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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: mate · temple · bulb · squash · clip · plane · rule · content

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. clip — to cut
  5. content — the amount
  6. squash — the sport
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bulb — for light
  10. mate — a friend
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — to breed
  14. content — happy
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. rule — a law
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. squash — to crush
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. clip — for paper
  24. rule — government

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