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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: row · cell · mate · temple · pitch · content · trunk · march

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. mate — a friend
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — happy
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. march — the month
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mate — to breed
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. row — a line
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. content — the amount
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. cell — a phone
  19. march — the month
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. march — music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. cell — in biology

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