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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
468
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: fine · temple · snap · march · spring · spell · pit · clip

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — music
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. fine — all right
  5. pit — in a race
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — for paper
  8. spring — of water
  9. pit — a hole
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spring — a coil
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. clip — a video
  16. spring — the season
  17. snap — to click
  18. spell — magic
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. fine — high quality
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. spell — letters
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. march — the month

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