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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: scale · mate · clip · tear · temple · foot · nail · spring

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. tear — from crying
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. scale — size or range
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. mate — to breed
  7. spring — the season
  8. mate — a partner
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. clip — to cut
  11. tear — to rip
  12. spring — a coil
  13. foot — a measure
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. tear — from crying
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. mate — a friend
  20. clip — a video
  21. scale — in music
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. spring — of water
  24. foot — part of the body

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