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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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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: pound · arm · drill · rash · temple · spell · court · straw

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. court — of law
  6. drill — army training
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. pound — a weight
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — letters
  11. drill — the tool
  12. court — for sport
  13. drill — a practice
  14. rash — hasty
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. spell — a short time
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. court — of a king
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. temple — side of the head

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