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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  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. face — part of the head
  2. ground — a position
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. current — electric
  5. ground — the earth
  6. face — to point toward
  7. ground — crushed
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — of water
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. tear — from crying
  12. deal — to handle
  13. rash — a series
  14. tear — from crying
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. court — for sport
  17. row — a line
  18. court — of a king
  19. tear — to rip
  20. row — to paddle
  21. face — to confront
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. rash — hasty
  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