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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: court · coach · last · temple · kid · can · pitcher · cue

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. kid — to tease
  3. cue — a hint
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. court — for sport
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. kid — child
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. can — a tin
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. last — to go on
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. court — of a king
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cue — for pool
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. court — of law
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. can — to be able to
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. last — final
  24. can — a tin

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