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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: temple · toast · current · court · kid · pitch · scale · bay

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. current — electric
  4. kid — to tease
  5. court — of a king
  6. toast — bread
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. scale — in music
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. court — for sport
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. kid — child
  16. current — happening now
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. pitch — completely
  20. court — of law
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. current — of water

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