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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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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: temple · ball · stick · cell · bore · branch · pitch · snap

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. bore — to tire
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. branch — a division
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. snap — to click
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. bore — to drill
  13. cell — a phone
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. ball — a great time
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. pitch — completely
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. ball — a dance
  24. cell — in biology

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