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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: chest · race · court · stem · saw · leaves · temple · game

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. chest — of your body
  3. race — the arms race
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. chest — of your body
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. saw — the tool
  9. race — humankind
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. chest — a box
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. race — a contest
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. saw — the tool
  19. game — wild animals
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. game — a match
  22. court — of a king
  23. stem — to come from
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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