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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. chest — of your body
  3. squash — the sport
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. mine — for digging
  6. drill — the tool
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. court — of a king
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. drill — a practice
  14. squash — to crush
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. drill — army training
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. court — for sport

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