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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: charge · leaves · temple · cell · last · field · staff · snap

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. charge — in control
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. field — a subject
  5. charge — electricity
  6. last — to go on
  7. cell — in biology
  8. staff — employees
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. snap — to click
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. staff — a stick
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. staff — employees
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. field — for sport
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. last — final
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. charge — a price
  22. cell — a phone
  23. field — farmland
  24. last — finally

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