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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: cell · race · scale · drill · temple · ground

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. cell — a phone
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. drill — a practice
  5. ground — a position
  6. ground — crushed
  7. race — the arms race
  8. cell — in biology
  9. drill — army training
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. race — humankind
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. race — a contest
  15. drill — the tool
  16. scale — in music
  17. ground — the earth
  18. scale — size or range

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