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

Word bank: court · season · root · foot · pound · temple · cell · arm

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. foot — a measure
  4. cell — a phone
  5. pound — a weight
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. root — of a word
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. court — of a king
  12. root — the cause
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. root — of a plant
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. season — in sport
  17. cell — in biology
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. court — for sport
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. season — of the year
  24. court — of law

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