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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.

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: last · stem · clip · ball · trunk · rest · temple · fine

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. rest — a break
  3. fine — all right
  4. last — finally
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. rest — what's left
  8. clip — for paper
  9. ball — a dance
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. clip — to cut
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. clip — a video
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. fine — high quality
  19. last — to go on
  20. stem — to come from
  21. ball — a great time
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. rest — what's left
  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