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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: drill · cue · bark · temple · lash · stock · cell · game

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. drill — a practice
  3. cue — a signal
  4. bark — to shout
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. game — a match
  7. drill — army training
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — wild animals
  11. cue — a hint
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. stock — shares
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cue — for pool
  19. stock — goods
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. drill — the tool
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. cell — a phone

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