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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: temple · bark · bear · trunk · rash · cell · cue · plane

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. rash — hasty
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. plane — a tool
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. bark — to shout
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. cue — a hint
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. cue — a signal
  15. cue — for pool
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. bear — the animal
  18. rash — a series
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. cell — a phone
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bear — the animal

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