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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 116 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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. court — of law
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — music
  5. face — to confront
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. rock — a stone
  10. face — to point toward
  11. field — for sport
  12. squash — to crush
  13. court — for sport
  14. squash — the sport
  15. field — a subject
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. field — farmland
  18. kid — child
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. court — of a king
  23. kid — to tease
  24. cabinet — ministers

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