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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. race — a contest
  4. court — of law
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. march — the month
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. mark — a trace
  11. march — music
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. face — to point toward
  14. court — for sport
  15. dip — to sink
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. court — of a king
  18. mark — a grade
  19. face — part of the head
  20. march — the month
  21. race — the arms race
  22. race — humankind
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. face — to confront

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