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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: board · temple · last · cap · court · kid · face · date

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. last — final
  4. court — of law
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. board — a committee
  7. last — to go on
  8. board — to get on
  9. date — the fruit
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of a king
  12. face — part of the head
  13. kid — to tease
  14. last — finally
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. cap — a hat
  17. kid — child
  18. cap — of ice
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. face — to confront
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. face — to point toward
  24. date — on the calendar

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