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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
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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: clip · race · mark · net · jam · trunk · temple · spring

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. net — for catching
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — for paper
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. spring — the season
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. net — in sport
  9. spring — of water
  10. race — a contest
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mark — a grade
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. clip — a video
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. race — the arms race
  21. spring — a coil
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. net — after costs
  24. race — humankind

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