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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: clip · temple · suit · degree · leaves · chest · content · nail

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. degree — an amount
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. clip — a video
  9. content — the amount
  10. suit — in cards
  11. chest — of your body
  12. suit — to fit
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. content — happy
  15. clip — to cut
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. degree — from a university
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. clip — for paper
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. degree — temperature

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