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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. mark — a grade
  4. court — for sport
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. court — of law
  7. land — a country
  8. mark — a trace
  9. land — ground
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — to point toward
  12. bound — certain
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. bound — obliged
  15. pound — a weight
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bound — tied together
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. court — of a king
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. land — to come down
  24. hand — help

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