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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
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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: perch · last · charge · mine · clip · roll · bat · temple

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. charge — in control
  3. bat — the animal
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. clip — for paper
  6. charge — electricity
  7. perch — the fish
  8. last — to go on
  9. roll — a list
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. clip — a video
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. clip — to cut
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. roll — a cake
  21. charge — a price
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. roll — on a roll

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