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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. band — a ring
  3. dip — to sink
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. field — for sport
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. drill — army training
  10. band — a music group
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — to handle
  14. drill — a practice
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. field — a subject
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. rush — hurry
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. field — farmland
  24. drill — the tool

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