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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: chest · fall · stock · key · temple · deal · pass · clip

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. fall — the season
  3. key — in music
  4. clip — a video
  5. chest — of your body
  6. clip — for paper
  7. deal — to handle
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. stock — shares
  11. pass — a permit
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. key — the most important part
  16. fall — to drop
  17. stock — goods
  18. clip — to cut
  19. fall — to drop
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. chest — a box
  22. chest — of your body
  23. key — for a lock
  24. temple — side of the head

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