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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: cue · bound · coach · safe · temple · land · cold · clip

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. cue — a hint
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bound — certain
  9. land — ground
  10. land — a country
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bound — tied together
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cue — a signal
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. land — to come down
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bound — obliged
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. clip — a video
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. cold — not warm

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