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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cap — a lid
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. cell — a phone
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. clip — for paper
  14. court — for sport
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — in biology
  17. court — of a king
  18. cap — of ice
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. court — of law
  21. clip — to cut
  22. cap — a hat
  23. rush — hurry
  24. clip — a video

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