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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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468
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: file · chest · racket · mine · bark · perch · charge · temple

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. perch — the fish
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. charge — in control
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. mine — for digging
  13. file — a document
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. file — a line of people
  16. charge — a price
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. charge — electricity
  19. file — a tool
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. chest — a box
  22. bark — to shout
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — of your body

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