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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. kid — to tease
  6. court — of law
  7. court — for sport
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. ground — crushed
  10. ground — the earth
  11. tear — from crying
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. ground — a position
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. tear — from crying
  18. kid — child

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