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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. pit — a hole
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. saw — the tool
  6. court — of a king
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. season — in sport
  11. pit — in a race
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. season — of the year
  15. bear — the animal
  16. court — of law
  17. pass — a permit
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. bear — the animal
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. court — for sport
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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