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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 was this ________________ built?
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. drill — a practice
  3. court — of a king
  4. perch — the fish
  5. deal — to handle
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. drill — the tool
  11. last — final
  12. last — to go on
  13. pop — to visit
  14. ball — a dance
  15. pop — soda
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. court — of law
  19. last — finally
  20. drill — army training
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. court — for sport
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. pop — music

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