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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: fall · lash · march · bay · cold · tube · temple · court

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  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. march — the month
  2. fall — the season
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. march — the month
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. court — of law
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. tube — a container
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. tube — the underground
  17. march — music
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. court — for sport
  23. fall — to drop
  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