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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: drill · chest · ground · vault · rush · bay · stem · temple

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. ground — the earth
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. rush — hurry
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. ground — a position
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. ground — crushed
  13. drill — army training
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. chest — a box
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. drill — a practice
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. drill — the tool
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. vault — a safe

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