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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: temple · drill · roll · stem · bay · cell · jam · ground

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. cell — a phone
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. stem — to come from
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. ground — the earth
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — in biology
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. roll — a list
  14. roll — a cake
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. ground — crushed
  17. drill — a practice
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. ground — a position
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. bay — a horse colour

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