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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. face — part of the head
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. club — a group
  6. fork — in a road
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. face — to confront
  9. rash — hasty
  10. mate — a partner
  11. clip — a video
  12. court — of a king
  13. clip — for paper
  14. mate — a friend
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. rash — a series
  18. court — of law
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. club — for golf
  21. clip — to cut
  22. face — to point toward
  23. court — for sport
  24. club — for dancing

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