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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. hand — in cards
  9. court — of law
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. tube — the underground
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. court — of a king
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — the cause
  16. hand — help
  17. tube — a container
  18. root — of a plant

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