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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: fork · bore · temple · cell · vault · ground

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. ground — a position
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. bore — to tire
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. fork — in a road
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. ground — crushed
  10. vault — a safe
  11. cell — in biology
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. ground — the earth
  17. cell — a phone
  18. temple — side of the head

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