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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — to be able to
  3. court — of a king
  4. chest — of your body
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. chest — a box
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. cold — an illness
  11. court — of law
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. can — a tin
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. chest — of your body
  17. court — for sport
  18. temple — side of the head

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