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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: game · deal · court · trunk · ball · temple · squash · march

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. squash — the sport
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. game — a match
  7. court — for sport
  8. deal — to handle
  9. court — of a king
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. squash — to crush
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. ball — a dance
  15. court — of law
  16. march — music
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. march — the month
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. march — the month
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. ball — a great time
  24. trunk — of a tree

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