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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. court — of law
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bat — the animal
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. march — the month
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. march — the month
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. court — for sport
  15. fall — to drop
  16. court — of a king
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. fall — to drop
  19. march — music
  20. fall — the season
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. cold — an illness
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. temple — a place of worship

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