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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: cold · hand · season · temple · clip · bass · rule · safe

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. bass — the fish
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. bass — low music
  5. rule — a law
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — a video
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. cold — not warm
  11. clip — to cut
  12. cold — an illness
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. hand — in cards
  17. season — of the year
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. hand — help
  22. season — in sport
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — to rule out

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