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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
468
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 · cold · court · wound · hide · net · charge · march

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. net — after costs
  3. charge — a price
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. wound — an injury
  6. net — for catching
  7. court — of a king
  8. charge — in control
  9. court — for sport
  10. cold — an illness
  11. charge — electricity
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. march — the month
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. court — of law
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. march — music
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. cold — not warm
  22. net — in sport
  23. march — the month
  24. hide — to keep secret

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