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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mug — a cup
  3. ball — a dance
  4. branch — a division
  5. bear — the animal
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. tear — from crying
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. court — of law
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. court — for sport
  15. mug — a face
  16. mug — to rob
  17. court — of a king
  18. tear — to rip
  19. tear — from crying
  20. ball — a great time
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. ball — a round shape

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