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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. game — a match
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. court — of a king
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. court — for sport
  16. wind — moving air
  17. game — wild animals
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. fall — to drop
  21. court — of law
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. wind — moving air
  24. date — the fruit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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