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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. court — of law
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. net — for catching
  8. bore — to tire
  9. court — for sport
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. track — to keep track
  12. net — in sport
  13. face — to point toward
  14. track — a path
  15. bore — to drill
  16. track — a song
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. deal — to handle
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. net — after costs
  22. snap — to click
  23. court — of a king
  24. face — part of the head

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