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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pop — to visit
  3. court — of a king
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. tube — the underground
  6. cue — a signal
  7. court — of law
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. court — for sport
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. pop — soda
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. shower — rain
  15. kick — in football
  16. pitch — completely
  17. cue — a hint
  18. cue — for pool
  19. tube — a container
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. pop — music
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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