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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: date · content · sharp · trunk · temple · snap · clip · squash

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  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. clip — to cut
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. squash — to crush
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. sharp — clever
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. squash — the sport
  14. date — the fruit
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. clip — for paper
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. snap — to click
  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