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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. fall — to drop
  3. hand — in cards
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. court — of a king
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. last — final
  8. court — of law
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. last — finally
  12. rule — a law
  13. court — for sport
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. last — to go on
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. fall — to drop
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. net — in sport
  21. fall — the season
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. hand — help
  24. net — after costs

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