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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 · row · season · court · net · capital · pass · rush

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. court — of law
  3. net — after costs
  4. rush — hurry
  5. court — of a king
  6. capital — a city
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — in sport
  11. season — of the year
  12. capital — money
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. row — to paddle
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. court — for sport
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. season — in sport
  21. row — a line
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. temple — side of the head

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