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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 120 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: cell · mark · last · temple · mine · sharp · bank · pit

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. last — to go on
  4. bank — for money
  5. last — finally
  6. pit — in a race
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mine — for digging
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. mark — a grade
  14. bank — for money
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. pit — a hole
  17. sharp — clever
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. bank — of a river
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. cell — in biology
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cell — a phone

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