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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: temple · drill · pitcher · press · rash · cell · branch · bear

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. bear — the animal
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. cell — in biology
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. drill — a practice
  11. rash — hasty
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. drill — the tool
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. press — to push
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. rash — a series
  20. branch — a division
  21. press — a publisher
  22. drill — army training
  23. bear — the animal
  24. press — newspapers

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