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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: temple · swing · row · squash · trunk · last · present · court

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. last — to go on
  4. swing — to play on
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. row — to paddle
  7. court — of law
  8. last — final
  9. court — of a king
  10. row — a line
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. present — a gift
  14. court — for sport
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. squash — the sport
  17. swing — music
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. present — there
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. squash — to crush
  23. last — finally
  24. swing — in golf

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