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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: temple · clip · pit · pound · bat · cell · march · charge

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. clip — to cut
  3. march — the month
  4. charge — electricity
  5. clip — a video
  6. pit — a hole
  7. march — music
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. charge — in control
  10. charge — a price
  11. march — the month
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. clip — for paper
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bat — the animal
  18. cell — a phone
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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