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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. pit — in a race
  4. court — of a king
  5. pit — a hole
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. drill — army training
  9. court — of law
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. cell — a phone
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. court — for sport
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cell — in biology
  21. drill — the tool
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cold — an illness

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