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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: temple · bore · clip · plane · rest · date · board · chest

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — a break
  5. chest — a box
  6. clip — for paper
  7. chest — of your body
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. board — to get on
  10. clip — to cut
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — the fruit
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. board — a committee
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. plane — a tool
  23. rest — what's left
  24. clip — a video

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