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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. court — of law
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. rule — a law
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. cue — a hint
  8. chest — of your body
  9. cue — a signal
  10. bound — certain
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a committee
  13. bound — obliged
  14. pit — a hole
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rule — government
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. cue — for pool
  21. court — of a king
  22. bound — tied together
  23. pit — in a race
  24. court — for sport

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