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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: court · rash · game · hand · snap · rule · arm · temple

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. game — wild animals
  7. hand — in cards
  8. court — for sport
  9. hand — help
  10. snap — to click
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. rule — a law
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. court — of law
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. game — a match
  22. rash — a series
  23. rule — government
  24. court — of a king

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