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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 120 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: pitcher · arm · temple · present · mate · snap · court · chest

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. court — of a king
  3. mate — a partner
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. court — for sport
  6. snap — to click
  7. present — there
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. court — of law
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — to breed
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. present — a gift
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. chest — a box
  24. present — the time now

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