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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — a short time
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. mine — for digging
  6. court — for sport
  7. band — a ring
  8. court — of law
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. band — a music group
  19. court — of a king
  20. spell — letters
  21. kid — to tease
  22. ball — a great time
  23. kid — child
  24. ball — a dance

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