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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: fall · temple · saw · cell · rush · clip · stick · mouse

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. clip — to cut
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. saw — the tool
  6. rush — hurry
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. fall — to drop
  9. clip — for paper
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. clip — a video
  15. fall — the season
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. saw — the tool
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. cell — a phone
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. fall — to drop
  23. cell — in biology
  24. rush — to hurry

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