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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. court — of a king
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. can — a tin
  5. season — of the year
  6. can — a tin
  7. kid — child
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. suit — clothes
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cell — in biology
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cell — a phone
  14. suit — to fit
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. suit — in cards
  17. court — of law
  18. perch — the fish
  19. court — for sport
  20. can — to be able to
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — in sport
  23. kid — to tease
  24. perch — for a bird

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