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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: mug · march · stock · bowl · jam · game · temple · clip

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. clip — to cut
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. clip — for paper
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. march — the month
  10. game — a match
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. mug — a face
  13. march — the month
  14. mug — a cup
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — goods
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. mug — to rob
  20. game — wild animals
  21. march — music
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. clip — a video

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