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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. court — for sport
  4. mate — a partner
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. mate — a friend
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. race — a contest
  10. court — of law
  11. game — a match
  12. game — wild animals
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. kick — in football
  19. mate — to breed
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. race — humankind
  22. court — of a king
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. race — the arms race

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