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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 120 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: spring · band · fork · temple · trunk · ruler · cell · nail

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — a coil
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. spring — the season
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. fork — in a road
  10. band — a music group
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. cell — a phone
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. cell — in biology
  19. band — a ring
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. fork — to eat with

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