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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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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: mine · temple · content · staff · snap · mate · ground · saw

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mate — a friend
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. content — happy
  8. ground — the earth
  9. staff — a stick
  10. mate — a partner
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. staff — employees
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. ground — crushed
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mate — to breed
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. ground — a position
  19. content — the amount
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. saw — the tool
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. snap — to click

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