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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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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: charge · stem · temple · drill · clip · chest · cell · bore

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  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. stem — to come from
  2. cell — a phone
  3. drill — army training
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. chest — a box
  7. cell — in biology
  8. drill — a practice
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. charge — electricity
  12. bore — to tire
  13. charge — a price
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. charge — in control
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bore — to drill
  18. chest — of your body
  19. clip — for paper
  20. chest — of your body
  21. clip — to cut
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. temple — a place of worship
  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