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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.

Words on the sheet
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: temple · court · ground · pitcher · object · rule · kid · net

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. rule — government
  3. rule — a law
  4. court — of law
  5. kid — to tease
  6. net — for catching
  7. object — an aim
  8. net — in sport
  9. object — to protest
  10. court — of a king
  11. ground — a position
  12. court — for sport
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. kid — child
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. net — after costs
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. ground — the earth
  24. object — a thing

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