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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. court — for sport
  5. pit — in a race
  6. deal — to handle
  7. march — music
  8. court — of a king
  9. cap — a hat
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. shower — to wash
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. shower — rain
  15. pit — a hole
  16. march — the month
  17. cap — of ice
  18. court — of law
  19. march — the month
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. cap — a lid
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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