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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
468
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: rock · temple · bear · pop · date · stem · march · clip

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pop — to visit
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. march — the month
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pop — soda
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. rock — a stone
  11. march — music
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. rock — music
  14. clip — to cut
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. clip — a video
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. stem — to come from
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. march — the month
  23. date — the fruit
  24. pop — music

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