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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. court — of law
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. land — a country
  9. present — there
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. present — a gift
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. court — for sport
  14. land — ground
  15. land — to come down
  16. wound — an injury
  17. spell — magic
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. present — the time now
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wound — an injury

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