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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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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 · last · stick · spring · rest · temple · shower · face

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rest — a break
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — to confront
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. court — of a king
  12. shower — rain
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. last — to go on
  16. last — final
  17. last — finally
  18. rest — what's left
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. court — for sport
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. court — of law
  23. spring — a coil
  24. temple — a place of worship

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