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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 120 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: rash · court · temple · capital · bound · rush · lash · bark

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. court — of law
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. capital — a city
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. bound — tied together
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bound — obliged
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. court — of a king
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. rash — a series
  20. capital — money
  21. bark — to shout
  22. rash — hasty
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. court — for sport

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