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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 120 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: rest · spring · temple · chest · rock · mine · bowl · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — a video
  3. rock — a stone
  4. chest — of your body
  5. clip — for paper
  6. chest — a box
  7. spring — of water
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. spring — the season
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. rest — a break
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. chest — of your body
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. rest — what's left
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. spring — a coil
  24. rock — music

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