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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 124 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. ball — a great time
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. last — finally
  5. face — to point toward
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. last — final
  8. court — of a king
  9. net — after costs
  10. perch — the fish
  11. net — in sport
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. last — to go on
  15. face — part of the head
  16. pass — a permit
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. net — for catching
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. ball — a dance
  22. face — to confront
  23. court — for sport
  24. court — of law

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