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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. court — for sport
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. court — of a king
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. face — to confront
  10. row — to paddle
  11. face — to point toward
  12. wake — a trail
  13. rash — a series
  14. band — a music group
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. row — a line
  18. court — of law
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. game — a match
  21. rash — hasty
  22. band — a ring
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. game — wild animals

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