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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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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: fork · court · temple · snap · arm · row · mouse · season

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. snap — to click
  5. court — of law
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. court — of a king
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. season — in sport
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. row — to paddle
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. row — a line
  17. court — for sport
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. fork — in a road
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. temple — a place of worship

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