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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: fan · bowl · rest · temple · court · rule · present · staff

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. court — for sport
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. staff — employees
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. rule — a law
  7. rule — government
  8. rest — what's left
  9. present — there
  10. court — of a king
  11. staff — a stick
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. court — of law
  14. present — a gift
  15. rest — a break
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. present — the time now
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. rest — what's left
  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