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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: chest · cue · cell · vault · temple · spring

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. 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. chest — of your body
  2. cue — a signal
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. chest — a box
  6. cue — a hint
  7. chest — of your body
  8. cell — a phone
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. vault — a safe
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. cue — for pool
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. spring — the season
  18. 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