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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. mate — to breed
  5. face — to point toward
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. capital — a city
  8. court — of law
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. mate — a friend
  11. court — of a king
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. chip — to eat
  14. chip — for betting
  15. mate — a partner
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. face — part of the head
  20. face — to confront
  21. capital — money
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. chip — in a computer

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