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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 124 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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. suit — in cards
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. hand — help
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. court — of a king
  9. shower — rain
  10. fork — in a road
  11. file — a tool
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. file — a line of people
  14. hand — in cards
  15. suit — to fit
  16. file — a document
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. court — for sport
  19. shower — to wash
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. suit — clothes
  24. temple — a place of worship

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