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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. last — to go on
  3. face — to point toward
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. hand — help
  6. face — part of the head
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — crushed
  10. court — of law
  11. face — to confront
  12. last — finally
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. hand — in cards
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. court — for sport
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. ground — the earth
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. last — final

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