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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: clip · temple · pitch · cabinet · file · cold · roll · coach

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. clip — to cut
  3. file — a line of people
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — for paper
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. pitch — completely
  15. file — a document
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. roll — a list
  18. roll — a cake
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. file — a tool
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. cold — the Cold War

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