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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: temple · object · court · ground · mug · dip · shower · stem

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. shower — to wash
  3. object — a thing
  4. court — of law
  5. ground — a position
  6. dip — to sink
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. ground — crushed
  10. mug — a cup
  11. ground — the earth
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. shower — rain
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. mug — a face
  22. object — an aim
  23. stem — to come from
  24. mug — to rob

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