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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: bass · rest · cell · wound · land · mate · temple · fork

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. mate — to breed
  3. cell — a phone
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. land — a country
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. rest — a break
  11. wound — an injury
  12. land — to come down
  13. rest — what's left
  14. fork — in a road
  15. mate — a partner
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. land — ground
  19. cell — in biology
  20. mate — a friend
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the fish

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