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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: rock · temple · cell · jam · cue · bat · wound · land

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — an injury
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — in biology
  7. land — ground
  8. cell — a phone
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. cue — a hint
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. land — to come down
  16. cue — a signal
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — the animal
  20. land — a country
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. cue — for pool
  24. rock — music

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